


What's the Worst That Can Happen?

by Applepie



Category: Naruto
Genre: Gen, Kakashi Gaiden, Kakashi is calling himself Kabushi, Kakashi-centric, Something always happens when they say 'what's the worst that can happen' or similar, Time Travel
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2010-08-08
Updated: 2017-10-10
Packaged: 2017-12-11 13:45:59
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 11
Words: 63,683
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/799403
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Applepie/pseuds/Applepie
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Life was going quite well, if you asked Naruto Uzumaki. So why did he have to listen to Kakashi of all people? Now, they've time traveled to the past, smack dab in Minato's era, when the soon-to-be Hokage was sporting a team seven of his own. Let history run its course? Never! Kakashi-centric</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> While this first chapter is in Naruto's view, the story (or at least how much I've currently planned out) is majority Kakashi-centric.

Let's set the point straight beforehand. It's not like he  _wanted_  to go, really. In fact, all things considered, he was relatively happy where he was.

So, alright, maybe it irked him that at fifteen, he was still a genin - the only one among his friends (excluding Sasuke). But that fact could've easily been dealt with by taking the next Chunin Exam. It's not like any one expected Naruto Uzumaki to fail, considering he was one of Konoha's strongest ninjas. He did, after all, train with the legendary sennin Jiraiya, and most importantly, managed the impossible - brought Sasuke back home.

Half a year earlier, right after Sasuke killed Danzou, Sakura and Kakashi-sensei had rushed in to apprehend the Uchiha. Both of them failed. After watching Sakura stop her sneak attack a mere hair’s breath away from beheading Sasuke, Naruto knew he also wouldn't be able to fulfill this farce of a mission. Sasuke was his teammate, his best friend, his brother. Like Sakura, he could never stomach the thought of slaying Sasuke. So, instead, he brushed aside the Hokage's orders and commenced his original plan of dragging Sasuke home.

After bashing in Sasuke's head a couple times, the Uzumaki finally did his magic and convinced the broody boy that his vengeance had been achieved; both Itachi and Danzou were already six-feet-under. They roared and raged at each other, _chidori_ and _rasengan_ colliding, because that was how true men talked. Then, Naruto almost lost hope as Sauske turned calmly away from team seven in favour of his former allies.

But he’d been wrong to doubt Sasuke and himself. The blond fox-container's smile returned to Sasuke’s unexpected betrayal towards Zetsu, right after he called Madara out.

Madara was a slippery bastard. With the combined efforts of Naruto in Sage mode; Sasuke with Sakura behind him healing wounds and sending him chakra; and Kakashi with the Mangekyō Sharingan out, they just barely managed to do  _some_  harm to the "immortal" Uchiha. He disappeared into his space-time jutsu, irritated and fuming mad at the damage done and Sasuke's deceit.

That was the last time they saw Madara Uchiha - or at least for the time being.

Near death, and limbs giving out, the search team slowly made their way back to Konoha with Sasuke and Karin in tow.

With Danzou was out-of-commission, Kakashi was quickly promoted to apparent Hokage. His first task was to reappoint Sasuke as a leaf-nin - only after stripping him of his privileges, of course. There was willfulness and there was stupidity, and Kakashi was far from stupid. He had faith in his former student, but not unconditional trust, because though he liked to think the best of these precious students of his, they were still shinobi, forged from blood and death.

Still, for a defector, Sasuke wasn’t treated too horribly. There were only a few rules he’d set on the teen. No longer was Sasuke allowed to carry any other weapon other than standard kunai in the village. He was watched twenty-four seven, and could be immobilized at any time he seemed to be a harm. Neither was training was not allowed unless supervised. Naruto's immense trust was the only reason why the teen wasn't treated any worse.

The villagers for the most part, listened to their temporary Hokage. When Tsunade-sama awoke from her coma and retook the position, they grudgingly accepted Sasuke back. This was  _only_  after Naruto whined at her for days to trust Sasuke herself.

The village of Konoha treated Sasuke with as much scorn as they had once given Naruto, if not more. Who could blame them after Sasuke’s attempt at their lives? The girls no longer swooned after him, and Sasuke, although accepted, was left to his lonesome self.

As for Sakura, although she occasionally visited Sasuke, she spent most of her days in the Konoha General Hospital as a medic-nin. Her skills quickly improved under proper tutelage, until she was relied on as much as Tsunade herself. Never one to disappoint her growing reputation, she dedicated all her time to her skill – to the point where she was practically living in the hospital as her second home.

And the girl, Karin; not much could be said about her. She died before they could save her, still calling out for Sasuke.

But really, life wasn't so bad, with the war seemingly on a halt. The village was prospering again, and Konoha was almost back to its former glory. Yes, everything was going great, so  _why_ did he decide to listen to  _Kakashi_ of all people!

* * *

 

The day started out fine as Naruto routinely called Sasuke out for a quick spar. As usual, it ended with an ANBU showing up to tell them they were causing too much ruckus. He dallied around the village after that, before heading to check on Iruka-senei and his current Academy class, trying to corrupt his students. He was chased away by an angry Iruka, grin stretch on his prankster face, as Konohamaru and his pals held the chunin back. Good assist!

With nothing more interesting to do, he visted Sakura next, of course, interrupting her check ups and making her still-growing lists of patients wait hours more. The pink-haired girl was forced to shoo Naruto away before he could do any more damage, hands dangerously twitching into the form of boulder-breaking fists. Even Naruto knew better than to test his luck to that.

So lunch it was, then. There was no better place than Ichiraku.

If Naruto knew the insanity of trouble that he would soon be shoved head-first into courtesy of Kakashi, he would’ve skipped out on his favourite ramen that day, because no amount of good ramen was worth it. It was a shame he didn’t, though.

As Naruto merrily made his way to the Ramen bar, Kakashi intercepted him with a "Yo."

"Joining me for lunch, Kakashi-sensei?" the blond asked, not even batting an eyelash at his sudden appearance. He was used to Kakashi showing up when-ever and where-ever he wanted.

"Maybe later," the silver-haired man said, patting the teen on the head. "I was just wondering how much you knew about seals."

He stopped mid-stride at the word. "Fuinjutsu?" Naruto confirmed, "I studied a bit on it with Jiraiya, and then after on my own when I found out the Fourth was my dad." The boy grinned sheepishly, and muttered something about living up to his dad's legacy in an embarrassed tone.

The jounin nodded, knowing full well of this. "At the moment, you are the most qualified seal specialist in this village. Perhaps that’s not saying much, but you've studied it more intensively than anyone else present. What is your current level?"

Naruto let out a long " _uhhh_ ," before shrugging. "I know a fair amount. I'm sure I could recognize seals, if that's what you want me to do. Plus with a bit more studying, I could totally make my own!" he added enthusiastically. "So what's this about?"

Instead of an answer, the jounin's eye just creased up into a smile."That works," Kakashi replied with a satisfied nod. "If you’re curious, come along," he said cheerfully, turning around in spot.

Naruto watched him warily.

"Coming?" Kakashi urged, with a tilt of his head towards the village gates, as Naruto stood unmoving behind him.

Naruto blinked blankly. "Now?" At Kakashi nod, he groaned out loud with a sulk on his lips. "What about my ramen? I was going to Ichiraku's for lunch!" he whined.

Kakashi hummed and beamed back in response, a chilling chuckle echoing from the back of his throat. Naruto hid a shudder from his teacher's smirking expression. "Maa, I think you can skip out on lunch once in a while, Naruto. Don't you want to look good for the ladies?" he said casually, strutting down the road.

Naruto froze. "Are you calling me fat?" he demanded, as Kakashi continued on his way, seemingly oblivious to his cries. "I train it off, I swear. ...Sensei? Hey, Kakashi-sensei, are you listening to me?"

The man turned his head. "Maa maa, if you say you do," Kakashi agreed aloofly. He waved a hand, gesturing at the gates once more. "How about this, Naruto: if you do a good job, I'll treat you to the ramen you missed," he negotiated half-heartedly, because it didn’t take a genius to guess the blond’s response.

“Alright!” With a whoop, Naruto’s steps turned to leaps as he dragged his teacher out the village gates.

 

 

"A rock," Naruto deadpanned, "I skipped lunch and ran all that way so you could show me a rock."

"It's a very special rock," Kakashi corrected. Somewhere between Leaf and Cloud Country, the silver-haired jounin stumbled among this very rock while he was making his way back home post-mission.

Naruto lifted an unamused eye at his teacher, "What's so special about it?"

"Ahh, that's a good question," Kakashi said airily, but didn't elaborate.

The blond stared incredulously at him. "You mean you don't know? So we really did just come here to stare at a stupid rock?"

Kakashi tsked at the boy. "I didn't say that." The 'stupid' rock was about a meter high, eroded through weather and environment until it was shaped to something akin to an inverted pyramid. It sat deep in the forest on an uneven terrain of rocks and upheaved dirt. Trees surrounded the place densely like needles on a porcupine. If it weren't for Kakashi pointing out that particular boulder, Naruto would have dismissed it for being the boring rock he sorely believed it was.

"So…?" Naruto urged, when Kakashi was only being a pain, grinning mysteriously at his confusion.

Kakashi stepped forward and touched the large boulder. "Alright, teasing aside," the man finally said, kneeling down beside it, "Just watch." He channeled chakra out of his hand. The moment it reached the rock, the floor lit up in a pale red colour. "It looks to me like those are seals on the floor. I landed on the rock on my way back, and it absorbed chakra through my feet .”

Naruto dropped down, studying the seals. "I can't see them very clearly; it's too light." Kakashi poured in more chakra, and the seals lit up brighter, expanding further around them. Naruto looked cautiously over at his teacher before turning back to the seals. "It's not going to activate on us, is it?" he asked with due paranoia.

Kakashi shook his head. "I experimented on it before I reported back, and it hadn’t changed within that period of time. The results were the same if I continuously poured in chakra, or if I fed it in bit by bit - the seals would light up before slowly fading away. I've tried translating the seals, but I haven't actively studied fuinjutsu, and this is out of my league."

Naruto let out an interested _'huh'_ , before turning back down to the ground. He spoke and he worked: "You know, Sensei, studying something potentially dangerous sounds like something I would do. Aren't you usually the voice of reason against this stuff?"

"I believe that's Sakura nowadays," Kakashi joked lightly, before giving the boy a guilty grin. "I do admit, this intrigues me; I've yet to see a seal this intricate before." Kakashi studied the curving lines, face growing serious. "And with Madara liable to return any day now, I think it's best if we figured out what this does before he finds it and uses it to his advantage. The man has more experience and knowledge than any of us - if anyone could make use of this in a heartbeat, it would be him." That, perhaps, was the merits of being an immortal; his accumulative wisdom exceeded that of average shinobi.

"Right," Naruto said suddenly, motivation renewed. "I’ll do my best too!" He clambered beside Kakashia and dropped to the man's side to press his palm by his sensei’s. Kakashi raised an eyebrow. Naruto shrugged in response. "You're too slow. I can't see anything. We'll take all month at this pace and by then Madara would probably be back. Everyone’s depending on us!"

"If you want to light up the whole thing, it'll take more chakra than I want to spare without winding myself," Kakashi answered honestly.

Naruto shrugged at that. "That's why you've got me!" The blond focused on his hand on the stone, calling up the Kyuubi's power. "Are you sure it's safe, Sensei?" Naruto added suddenly, unable to help the bout of doubt that cropped up at that moment.

Kakashi mused over the question for all of a minute before answering reasonably. "If worse comes to worse, I’ve told Tsunade-sama about my plans for today, and she’ll dispatch someone to look for us if we don’t return. Otherwise, the Kyuubi won't let anything happen to you, and I have enough experience to tackle most worse-case scenarios; what's the worst that can happen?"

And then they both forced their chakra into the rock.

The pale red slowly shone brighter, until it was as red as blood, lighting up the mossy, leaf littered grounds. Between the cracks that were the dead leaves, strokes of patterns could be seen, weaving in and out in complicated scrawls. It ran far down the forest until it was out of their sight, only faintly visible from their vantage point by the glow it reflected off the tree trunks. Naruto watched it expand, eyes widening as he saw it continue further and further on. Kakashi finally looked a little worried.

“If you can, cut off your chakra,” the man ordered abruptly. “ _Now.”_

“Yeah-“ Naruto began, but then the wind suddenly picked up. It grew violent, hurling whichever way it pleased. It whipped and slashed brutally at their skins, threatening to leave red marks the next day.

"I'm stopping!" the blond yelled over the howling wind, hair flapping messily around his face. He tried to let go, but his hands stayed firmly attached. His chakra involuntarily spilled into the rock, as it sucked it in greedy. "It's stealing my chakra! I can't let go!"

A glance at Kakashi showed that the man felt the same as he did. His masked head drooped as the man quickly lost all his energy, and his wincing eye conveyed more emotion than the trained shinobi would ever purposely allow. "Sorry, Naruto," the man hissed out, before he dropped. His body collapsed into a boneless slouch, yet despite so, his hand was still firmly attached in place.

"KAKASHI!" Naruto screamed. He tried to thrash around, but his body stood still. His mind had no control over his actions. "Damn it, let met GO!" His attempt to blast himself out with chakra, but it failed as the rock merely absorbed it all in. "I'm not dying here, I'm not!" He cried determinedly.

If pulling out wasn’t possible then he’d do the opposite, damn it. He charged his chakra at it, hoping for it to overload the rock, for it to involuntarily self-destruct. If there was one thing Naruto was confident of, it was his chakra reserves.

Even so, he felt winded as his chakra was pulled out faster than anticipated. Still, for a moment Naruto was optimistic it would be fine in the end - and then, it turned red. Like toxin, raw Kyuubi chakra flowed out, stinging his coils as it coursed through his system. He'd used the red chakra before, but never this amount, never this quickly. His heart rate accelerated, his stomach dropped, and he wasn’t able to stifle a scream as he felt like his soul was being ripped out through his throat. His blue eyes bled blood-shot in pain, before he drooped, falling much like Kakashi had done not moment’s ago. Naruto tried to stay awake, but it was a futile attempt.

"You owe me so much ramen for this, Kakashi," he murmured out moodily, before blackness finally swallowed him up whole.

There was a flash of red light; ' _lightning'_  the villagers close by thought, and the two unconscious bodies disappeared from sight. There left no sign of a seal anywhere, and no residue chakra lingered to be traced. In short, there was nothing there to indicate anything happened in the forest. All was left was a meter tall rock sitting innocently on the rocky terrain, looking as suspicious as the presence trees in a forest.


	2. We're Back

The ground on his face was not a pleasant sensation. Or maybe it was the mud he was lying in?

"That's the last time I ever listen to you," a muffled voice to his right groaned out, spitting out dirt every other word. "I think I ate enough sand to fill Gaara's gourd." Silence greetied his words. "Kakashi-sensei?" the voice asked hesitantly.

Kakashi didn't bother to move from his position he was laid in, face-down on the ground. "Yes, yes, Naruto," he said dismissively, categorizing his functioning limbs and current status. His head was pounding, and the ground was oddly tilting. He had barely enough chakra to sense if there was any immediate danger around them. No, scratch that; he was  _seriously_  chakra exhausted and couldn't sense a thing.

There was shuffling and sounds of clothes crinkling as the boy beside him suddenly sat up. "This is your fault, Sensei!  _ARGH_ , my head!" Naruto moaned just as abruptly, clutching his head in his two hands as vertigo hit him. "What happened?"

The jounin ignored his student's words, unable to answer something he himself had no idea of either. The only thing he could suggest was perhaps they had activated a reverse-summoning seal, but he'd certainly never seen one that big or complicated before. Naruto also had dappled with reverse-summoning, Kakashi knew, so if the blond hadn't mentioned it while they were lightening up the odd rock, then that likely hadn't been it. What else could it be, though?

"Sensei!" Naruto whined. He gave his teacher a shove with his legs in annoyance, turning the man over.

 _Ahh, fresh air, and he didn't even need to move._ "Naruto, don't abuse your teacher." Kakashi breathed out, mind still revolving around the mystery what was the rock.

"Whatever," Naruto huffed. Then his brows furrowed, caught on the view around the two of them. "Hey, wait a minute. This isn't where we were before…" the teen started, trailing off in confusion.

 _Sky. Sun. Clouds._  Kakashi eye whirled as he took in the sights from his position on the ground. This was precisely why he’d considered they’d been reverse summoned – and yet, who would set the summon point in the middle of nowhere? The tall trees that had surrounded them and enclosed around the rock was replaced with a nondescript trail. And how far from Fire Country were they if he muddy and it hadn't rained in weeks?

"Where's that stupid rock?" Naruto demanded, pulling himself up to his knees to stand. "Damn it, Sensei! I knew we shouldn't have touched that thing. Where are we now?" He took a wobbly step forward. "I'm going to look around."

The Copy-nin stopped him with a hiss. "Naruto, I don't know about you, but I have no chakra to spare. We cannot afford to run blindly into danger in this state."

The teen halted, sliding back on the floor, muscles thanking him every second. "I know, but we can't just sit here and wait!" the blond argued. "We don't even know where ' _here'_  is. Besides, the Kyuubi helps me regenerate chakra faster than you."

"Not fast enough," Kakashi rebutted.

"But-"

Naruto's complain was interrupted by the vibrations of footsteps. "Naruto," the jounin said warningly. The blond nodded, also hearing the approaching travelers and understanding his teacher's unspoken words of 'stay alert'.

"Should we hide?"

Kakashi shook his head, "If they're ninjas, they'll sense us regardless. Besides, I doubt either of us can move out of the way fast enough to evade detection. Let's just hope they're friendly traveling merchants." Thought the chances of that were slim, outweigh by thieves, bandits, and fellow shinobi.

"Now what?" Naruto asked.

His teacher shrugged. There really was only one thing they could do at this point beside hope. "Play dead."

* * *

 

 

It had been three years since the blond had been assigned his team. They'd done all sorts off missions ranking from D-rank to B-rank. Heck, a couple A-ranks even managed to sneak their way in. He thought he'd seen almost every scenario possible in life. Yet, none of that prepared him for his little raven-haired chunin's comment of "Hey, there're two dead people lying in the middle of the road!"

Alright, dead people lying around weren't a big deal. He'd seen plenty of those. But in an area clearly undisturbed with no residue chakra floating around, and no signs of a recent battle, how did two chakra depleted ninjas come to be?

A biting voice broke his train of thought. "They're not dead, Idiot, there's still a faint pulse of chakra in them."

"I-I knew that!" The other boy yelled indignantly. He ran up the first man in front of him, coated in layers of mud, and promptly shook the man’s shoulders in a vigorous motion. The only reason why Minato allowed it was because he deemed the stranger no threat to his kids. "Wake up!” he cried, “What are you doing in the middle of the road?"

On the ground, Kakashi held quiet as the oddly familiar voice continued screaming in his ear. Now where had he heard this annoy voice before?

Footsteps grew louder as the other members of the group came closer to the loud brat beside him. "Geeze," the little miscreant continued, "how can you even breathe under that mud-caked mask? Don't worry, I'll take it off for you!" The kid’s fingers inched towards the cloth covering his face.

Before he could even touch it, Kakashi's hand snapped up and grabbed him by the wrists. His lone visible eye opened and creased into a smile as he gave the boy his greeting. "Yo," he said airily, as though he _hadn’t_ been playing dead just mere minutes ago. His smile didn't quite reach his lips, but no one could see it under the mask anyways. It was the best he could do considering just  _who_ was standing in front of him.

"Do you mind unhanding my student?" a voice asked from behind. His tone was light, almost playful, but Kakashi could hear the threat woven underneath it.

Kakashi's throat caught at the voice. 

He turned his head around, winced as the loaming figure shifted; sun, blinding him. He blinked the spots out of his eyes to be greeted with the sight of sunshine blond hair. Beneath it, clear, sky blue eyes narrowed down on him. 

"I apologise," he murmured, voice miles away. The raven-haired teen rubbed his wrist when Kakashi let go, stepping back towards his teacher.

 "Smooth, Obito," a voice drawled from further away.

"At least I woke him up, Kakashi," the first retorted back.

Their bickering confirmed the suspicions of the jounin on the ground. But how this odd phenomenon was happening, was a different story altogether.

The man, most likely Minato, his old (deceased!?) sensei, squatted beside him, giving Kakashi a hand to help him up. "Who might you be? And what happened here?" Minato asked. Kakashi's blatant lack of chakra clearly gave no threat to the blond.

"I don't -" Kakashi suddenly remembered Naruto, who was still lying motionless, uncertain if he was allowed to interrupt. "Na-" he cut off again. Perhaps it wasn't such a good idea to call the boy Naruto in front of his dad. He didn't know if it was possible something so simple could change the future, but what if Minato refused to name his son Naruto because of something like this? 'What if' a lot of things, actually, but nothing that was any good. "Na, wake up," he prodded his student beside him.

Naruto groaned and pretended to just awaken with an exaggerated roll of his head. "What happened?" The boy's eyes opened, and then widened as he was greeted with the sight of the Fourth Hokage. He froze and paled, eyes immediately darting away. Naruto had heard the childish voices a while ago yelling the names 'Kakashi' and 'Obito', but it didn't click why it sounded so familiar until just now. They were names of Kakashi's old team. And their teacher was the Fourth.  _His dad_.

The Fourth, or rather the Jounin, seeing as he was yet to be appointed that position, misunderstood the boy's ashen face. "Don't worry, we won't harm you. I just want to know what happened to you two," he placated.

"I… don't know?" Naruto said hesitantly, unsure of what he _could_ say. He glanced at his teacher for guidance, bust said man was too busy staring at his no-longer-dead teammates to even notice his look. He gave Kakashi a kick. "What happened?"

Kakashi painfully ripped his eyes off of Obito and Rin.

What happened? That was a good question. The two of them didn't even know what truly occurred, let alone have time to come up with a cover story - not that they knew they needed one in the first place. But as like all professional shinobi, lies came second nature in tight situations. Brevity was the key to a plausible excuse - let the other man fill in the gaps themselves, prompted by vague sounds of acknowledgement so that they could give themselves a small room for denial if it should come to that. "We were traveling," Kakashi began slowly, eyeing Naruto to cue him to play along, "We were on our way to Konoha, when we came across something odd on the road. We approached it to get a better look, only to be jumped from behind. The next thing I remember, I'm afraid, is feeling weaker and weaker, before passing out. And then I open my eyes and see that boy there," Kakashi finished, pointing to Obito.

Minato looked them over. "Is that all?" he asked, voice even as he held his judgement to himself.

"As far as I can remember," Kakashi agreed, while Naruto nodded fervently beside him.

There was no evidence to prove the two were lying, but on the other hand, there was nothing to prove they _weren’t_ lying either. Their appearances matched the man's story - there were no cuts or bruises on them, indicating they'd indeed never been caught in a fight. If they’d been jumped, they certainly never fought back. Their lack of chakra (absorbed out, perhaps?) agreed with the man's description of becoming drained until they collapsed.

Minato weight the consequences, before coming to a decision. He grabbed Kakashi, slinging the man’s arm over his shoulders for support. "Well, my team and I are heading to Konoha," he admitted, steadying the man’s queasy legs. "The two of you can come with us so a nurse can check you over.”

Naruto grinned as Obito and Rin ran over to help him up. "Thanks," he said.

"No problem. I wouldn’t like to leave you defenseless if anyone else runs across you two."

* * *

 

 

**Much later that day:**

When you wake up to the embrace of white walls and the smell of chemical disinfectants, hospital is your best bet. And yes, that's exactly where Kakashi found himself when he opened his eyes next.

He gave a soft groan, rolling towards his side. To his left, Naruto sat on the adjacent bed, having awakened much earlier than his teacher had. The moment Kakashi moved, he leaped over to him. "Finally, you’re up!" he cried in a low tone, trying not to let his voice project. "Took you long enough! They've been trying to question me all day, but I didn't know what I could say!"

They, apparently, were in a private room in the Konoha General Hospital. Visitors were not allowed, and ANBUs hiding discreetly in every shadow of the room. The only person who Naruto had talked to so far was the Hokage.

As if on cue, the hospital door opened, and the Third Hokage strode in. Minato, the one who had found them, was closely behind.

"Excellent, you're awake now," the Third said as soon as he walked in. Kakashi could help but stare at the man. He had watched the wrinkles grow on the old man’s face as years passed under his leadership. He saw the old man fall by the hands of Orochimaru, unable to save him. He had been there for his funeral as the whole of Konoha cried at their loss. And now, here, in front of his eyes, was that dear old Sarutobi Hiruzen, in the flesh, and as healthy and young as ever.

"You look as though you've seen a ghost," the man commented offhandedly as Kakashi continued to stare. "Your young friend here did the same thing," he added, motioning towards Naruto.

"We are shocked we have made it to Konoha, Hokage-sama," Kakashi said courteously.

The Third nodded thoughtfully. "Was Konoha your final destination? I hear you only arrived here by the chance assistance of Minato and his team." he said, observing the two in front of him. After washing off layers and layers of dried-mud from their skins, their appearance gave the Hokage quite a shock.

The first one who awoken had blond hair the exact shad as Minato's, and blue eyes only a hint of a shade darker. He could easily pass of as Minato's brother - twin, even - if he was older. As for the other man, Hiruzen had to perform a double-take. For a second, the man had thought Minato managed to bring back the late Hatake Sakumo from the beyond his grave. A second glance revealed all the slight differences. The man had a slimmer jaw line, and more of a lithe figure than the Sakumo they knew.

"It was a lucky coincidence,” the Sakumo look-alike replied.

"Is that so?” Hiruzen said, sceptically. He looked over at the silver-haired man, new mask in place of the old one that the nurse threw out due to the grime it accumulated when they found him. “I don’t believe we’ve caught your name?” he prodded.

Though it wasn’t an official interrogation, Kakashi knew better than to brush off his question. Kakashi thought fast, shuffling through names similar enough to his own that he would be able to react naturally. "Please, Hokage-sama, call me Kabushi. And that's …" He glanced over at Naruto for him choose his own alias.

The blond gave a jump. "Oh, uh, Naru – Narui?" Naruto said, unable to finish without a lilt in his voice, making it sound suspiciously like a question. The silver-haired jounin grimaced internally, but otherwise didn't react to give the teen away.

The Third looked as though he wanted to comment, but changed his mind, because it was a small matter. "You look awfully similar to a certain clan we have here in Konoha," he stated calmly, much more interested in this than the possibility of a lied name.

The jounin forced a smile on his face, above the wincing pinch he felt at the mention of his father. "Is that so? I must admit, that was why Narui and I were heading towards Konoha in the first place. I heard my brother lives here, and wanted to visit. -Or at least I'm hoping you're talking about Hatake Sakumo?” Kakashi confirmed, because he hadn’t missed the way the Third left out the identity of the clan as a sly method to test his knowledge. “Our parents split when we were young - I left with my mother who hadn't wish for her loyalties to be tied down to any particular village or country. I’ve been living the life as a traveler with Narui as my companion."

Kakashi, now dubbed Kabushi, looked at the old Hokage who nodded wordlessly at his explanation. Kakashi knew his father, Sakumo, was never one to talk about family, especially after Kakashi's mother died. In fact, he went as far as  _avoiding_ anything that had to do with family, little Kakashi included. The man always gave him empty promises, and left for missions as soon as he got back. His childhood was anything but welcoming.

"Sakumo never mentioned any relatives, but I cannot ignore the similarities of your appearances." Hiruzen looked as though he would've liked to light up his pipe, to puff away as he pondered through theincomplete puzzle laid by the two, but the Hospital banned smoking on the premises. "And your friend there?" he asked, hand waving over at Naruto. "He wouldn't speak until you were awake."

This was slightly trickier. "Maa, kids are paranoid of the littlest things. He was probably afraid you were enemies, and would kill one of us after he gave up information." He waved his hand lazily, uttering his excuses so nonchalantly that were they anyone else, the lie could’ve been overlooked.

But both Minato and the Hokage's eyes narrowed. "And what kind of enemies would you have?" the blond Jounin asked suspiciously. "And while I'm at it, care to explain the Konoha hitai-ate you both were found with?"

 _"_ You can never be careless," Kabushi said honestly, not quite answering the question, "We _were_ jumped by unknown men only earlier, and I’ve always taught him to be safe than sorry. When uncertain, it is always wise to view all in suspicion."

He then hid a pause with a breath, uncertain how to breach the headband issue.

"They're mine!" Naruto chimed in quickly, contributing at last. He'd been mulling over his excuses for a while while Kakashi had taken over the brute of the conversation.

The Hokage looked over at the young blond, and eyebrow rose to urge the boy on. "Oh?" he said.

Naruto nodded enthusiastically. "Yeah," the boy swung his feet where he had them dangling off the hospital bed, the action making him seem younger than ever. "I found a Konoha hitai-ate stashed away in my stuff a long time ago. I think it might have been one of my parent's. I don't really remember either of them, but I've treasured the headband since then because it could be theirs." Naruto wriggled in spot as his mind churned, transitioning to the next part of his story, "So - uh, I took up wandering around since I was alone and there was nothing else to do, and then I met Kak- Kabushi-sensei. He taught me practically all I know. Kabushi, he, uh, actually found his hitai-ate on a dead guy. I told him to take it 'cause I thought it might make getting into Konoha easier if we somehow showed we had something connected to it? My fault, really…" Naruto rubbed the back of his head sheepishly.

Hiruzen spoke, "And just what village were you from?"

Naruto shrugged, scratching his hair, likely hadn't thought ahead this much. "Donno," he said before vaguely waving his hand in a random direction. "There were trees around, and birds, and this butt-ugly rock," he glared at Kakashi who didn't bother to react, "and we lived in a little hut with nothing but cold water, and I was always alone." Naruto hummed thoughtfully before cocking his head over at his interrogators, "...how do I know if I was in a village?" he asked curiously, turning the question back on them.

"Were there guards that stopped you from leaving as you left?" Minato inquired, to which Naruto shook his head.

"We're travelers," Kakashi repeated, a small futile hope that he wouldn’t need to elaborate. It was unfulfilled.

"Ah, but now that you're both rested up, it is apparent your chakra levels are beyond that of mere civilians. You both have clearly been trained - but where were you taught?" the old Hokage pressed. "This boy claims he learnt from you, but where did  _you_  learn it, Hatake?"

"My mother," Kakashi answered immediately, falling onto the imaginary mother who could be anything he wanted her to be, really. "My mother knew some techniques, and continued to pick up bits and pieces from people around the different countries. I continued travelling after her death, and later picked up the orphaned kid," he said, jerking his head over at Naruto

Kakashi gave a sigh, one of heartache and toilsome determination. "I’d always known my father and brother lived in Konoha, and after learning Narui’s family may have ties to the village as well, we decided to head over. Traveling is a passion, it is a lonely pursuit sometimes, and I do miss my family. I’d never thought about it during my travels with my mother, but after adopting Narui, he’s taught me to cherish what little relations I have left.” Kakashi let the truths in his words mingle with his lies.

"You should always cherish your precious people," Naruto nodded solemnly from the side, eyes cast downwards, remembering his own life and the friends (who were really as close to family as he'd ever gotten) he'd failed or almost failed.

The Third Hokage's face sobered at their expressions, because the sincerity of their statements hit deep, though he didn’t show it. Though he’d had to make hard decisions as Hokage, he’d always considered the village his family – and more so at the thought of his wife and son. Hiruzen shook his head regretfully. "I'm afraid Hatake Sakumo's no longer with us," the man said softly, nevertheless with a careful eye watching the other man’s reaction. “It has been seven years ago since Konoha has felt the loss of him."

"I see," Kakashi said calmly, voice unnaturally tight. Seeing his younger self standing by Obtio and Rin, perhaps twelve or thirteen, Kakashi logically knew his father was no longer a part of the world. Yet, somewhere in his mind he hoped he was wrong. He hoped the selfish, childish notion that perhaps Sakumo  _would_  still be here, and that this was a sort or parallel universe where everything that went wrong in his life hadn't happened to  _this_  Kakashi. But no, life was not that gracious to him. Kakashi grieved for his old man once more.

"He had a son, however. Hatake Kakashi," the old man continued, offering the information, perhaps, because he approved of the older Hatake’s genuine response. "He is the sole member of the Hatake clan in Konoha."

The silver-haired jounin closed his eyes, willing the sudden bombardment of memories to disperse. He remembered the pain, the sorrow, the pity, the hate. He remembered how callous he was by this point in time - a heartless robot; a tool with nothing to live for, eroded by bitterness. He remembered how that cost him  _everything_.

He pushed everything away, and everything left. For years after, he was nothing more than an empty shell.

Kakashi didn’t want to push his luck, but the topic was a perfect segue into his next point of action. He lowered his head in a sign of submission, voice carrying the jagged beat of hesitance.  “I admit, Narui and I had only planned on a brief visit to Konoha, but hearing this… I must implore you, Hokage-sama, please allow us to stay." The old man's eyes bore on him, and Kakashi struggled to dredge up nothing but the feel of sincerity. "I remember my own state when I lost my parent young, and it was not an ideal time for me. I wish to be there for m- my nephew. I am willing to become a citizen of Konoha for that. I pledge my loyalty as a shinobi to Konoha and Lord Hokage."

"Oh?"

Naruto spoke up from the adjacent bed. His eyes were shadowed, remembering his own childhood. "It sucks," he said in a pained voice, "when you're all alone; when no one understands." His thoughts wandered towards their old broody teammate. "Friends are nice, but sometimes, nothing beats family. It's a connection that can't be replaced. I pledge as well."

The chair Hiruzen was on creaked as he rose from his seat. "I understand your requests," he said, voice betraying nothing. He turned towards the door. "For now, please take your time to recuperate in the hospital. We shall speak again soon." With that, he left the room. Minato tracked the man, perhaps watching his Hokage’s back, before finally following suit to exit the room. He gave the two patients a nod, discreetly lingering on the downtrodden form of Naruto, and then quickly left.

As their footsteps descended down the hall, Naruto stared after his father's vacant spot. He spoke only two words, but the emotions behind it told the whole story. "He's alive," Naruto whispered.

Kakashi smiled softly, his own emotions barely kept under control, "Yes, he is. They all are."

* * *

 

 

Back at the Hokage's office, Hiruzen leaned back onto his chair, lighting up his pipe at the same time. Minato stood attentively in front of the desk as the old man stared out his tower window.

"What do you think about the two?" the Hokage asked, sounding all the world casual.

Minato raised his head, drawing his mind back on the travelers. "Well," Minato started hesitantly, "considering we  _are_  in a middle of a war, it is inconceivable to accept their words at face value. The chances of them being a spy is much too high to dismiss at this critical time in battle. "

"But?" The man could hear the pause at the end of Minato's sentence.

The Namikaze closed his eyes, Narui’s face behind his eyelids. The weary, sad tremor of their voices echoed in his mind. "But - maybe I'm too soft - but I don't think all of that was a lie. I could feel their emotions - their sadness when they were talking about being alone. And that Hatake - Kabushi - he honestly wanted to help Kakashi." Minato's face hardened. "But they're not giving us the whole truth. Not about their history. It's too vague, riding on excuses that are impossible to prove otherwise, yet impossible to prove truthful either.”

Minato glanced at the Hokage who nodded at his words. The man seemed to have formed his own judgement in the time it took Minato to relay his opinion, but he didn't seem eager to share it. Instead, Hiruzen gestured at him, "If you were Hokage, how would you go about handling this case, Minato?" he asked.

Minato's eyes widened. "Me?" Minato confirmed, bewildered at the command, but didn’t question orders. He forced his mind back to work, critically re-reviewing the information, speaking out his process. "Given his looks, Kabushi  _is_  a Hatake, but that doesn't say much for his loyalties. The other boy is completely unknown. The presence of the ongoing war casts them in a suspicious light – they could be spies –, yet the fact I found them chakra exhausted in the middle of the road - where  _anyone_  could get at them – makes the matter questionable. If our route back to Konoha had been found out beforehand and they had been planted there deliberately… it’s still too risky - if they lost too much chakra, or if bandits or other shinobi got to them first, they could have easily died. Unless they were expendable, but it’s unlikely considering they especially recruited a Hatake, a known loyal Konoha clan, to lower our guard."

He mulled over their stories. "By saying they're travelers, they're tying themselves to no nation. Yet, they both have Konoha hitai-ate, showing that they want to be in ours - stolen or not. Or maybe they even killed the men themselves to get the protector? Yet, wouldn't that only make us suspicious of them? Why do it?" He ran an agitated hand through his hair. "They've offered themselves to Konoha, but is that only to get closer to our shinobi?"

The man spent minutes more running ideas through his mind.

"Well?" the Third pressed.

Minato cleared his throat. "As a Hokage, I would accept them. Especially with the war so close, we will need all the man-power we can get. Although, I would keep ANBU assigned to keep an eye on them at all time." He rubbed his chin, "Hmm, as soon as possible, I would like to see where their strength is at so I know what to expect of them if they  _are_ a threat. Though it will be likely they suppress their true talent, at least we will have an idea of their abilities and reflexive reactions. As well, I would want to devise a way to test their loyalty."

He glanced over at the old Hokage, who huffed wordlessly on his pipe. It was a long time before he nodded at him, just as the blond’s confidence was starting to wane. Minato let out a breathe he didn't know he was holding, and gave the old man a pearly grin in relief, feeling as though he'd passed a test of sorts.

His grin suddenly diminished. "As a teacher, however," he started again, and Hiruzen looked over at him. "As Kakashi's teacher," the blond specified, "I want them to stay so Kabushi can,  _if_  he can, help Kakashi recover. It's unhealthy, what that boy puts himself through, and Kabushi seems like he understands – at least from his story. And that other blond-"

"Family?" Hiruzen asked, cutting him off. The resemblance between the two blonds was really too uncanny to ignore.

Minato rubbed his face. "Well, I don't  _think_  so. I’ve never heard of a Narui, though my knowledge of family history leaves much to be desired, and there’s no members in Konoha left to ask. I just think he’s a straightforward kid and that we can trust him. It’s honestly more of a gut feeling, really," he confided sheepishly.

The old man's eyes soften. "Maybe I've become too soft as well, my boy." At the blond's glance, Hiruzen nodded, "We'll let them stay. Minato, since your team discovered the two, I want you to keep your eyes on them during the day. I'll arrange a time for them to show their skills, and determine their ranks. Kabushi - I think he would want to stay with his nephew. Knowing Kakashi, the boy will be suspicious enough to know to stay alert. As for Narui-"

"I'll take him," the Namikaze said before he realized he'd spoken out loud.

"Ah? You will, Minato?"

The man blush lightly, "When we were talking about family connections, I felt something, and I hoped, maybe-"

"Maybe he was related to you?" the old man finished for him. At his agreement, the Third continued, "Don't let that get in the way of your judgment of them. For all we know, they're spies with exceptional acting, and the pair of them were picked out for this mission solely for that reason."

"Yes sir," Minato acknowledged. He knew that might be the case, but he could hope, couldn't he?

"Excellent, I will send an ANBU to inform the two when the nurses deem them fit to be discharged."

 Minato nodded and left at that, hearing the unofficial dismissal.

* * *

 

 

**Days later:**

"Ne, Sensei, what are they like?" a raven-haired boy hounded his teacher, the topic a constant since the day they picked the two unknown travelers up. His enthusiasm was only renewed when Minato told his team they would be joining them soon. Obito had tried to sneak into the hospital to get a glimpse of the two earlier, but curse the nurses, they banned all entry into their room.

Currently, Team Seven was in their usual training area, waiting for the two visitors to arrive.

"I don't see why one of them has to stay with me, Sensei," Kakashi bit out, ignoring Obito's chattering. He couldn't for the life of him figure out what went through his teacher's mind. Two unknown ninjas allowed to stay in Konoha - alright, fine, that was the Hokage’s decision. One unknown ninja staying with him, in  _his_  apartment -  _no!_  Minato wouldn't even tell him who they were.

Obito stopped jumping in eager anticipation, settling back into gravity with a sour look pursed on his lips. "What? Hey, why does the bastard get to live with one of them! I found them!"

"Take him."

"Kakashi," Minato reprimanded, "He's staying with you."

"Why  _him_!" Obitio whined, because it wasn’t fair the bastard got everything handed to him, especially when he didn’t know how to appreciate what he had. "Bakakashi doesn't even want him!"

The silver-haired chuunin glowered at his teacher, ignoring the typical insult to his name. "That's what  _I_  want to know."

The man had the audacity to laugh at them both. "Now, now, Kakashi. You'll see," he said cryptically, eyes twinkling in amusement.

Kakashi rolled his eyes at his excitement, falling back into his bored, crossed-arm posture. "Shouldn't they be here by now?" he said impatiently, finding fault in the two before they even arrived. Minato, though, only hummed in response, smiling cheerily to his annoyance.

It was at that moment, two vaguely familiar men approached them from the distance. Kakashi squinted against the sunlight, caught on the distant blond’s hair. He looked like a teenager, yet awfully similar to his sensei’s appearance. His hair glowed under the sun, and his personality seemed to echo that, with his lively, broad grin as he swept his arm in a large wave in greeting. He was _acceptable,_ if it weren’t for the bright orange of his clothes. Worse, he was a shinobi who wore orange – it was like painting a neon target on himself.

Kakashi quickly lowered the teen’s intellect to that of his Uchiha teammate, and then promptly disregarded him to turn to the older man he was with.

At least, that was the plan.

Kakashi didn’t expect the familiar sight that clenched his heart tight. Suddenly he could see himself, six, once more, looking out to the distance, watching as Sakumo came home from a long mission. He could see the man's silver hair, bouncing in each step, reflecting off a distinctive, shining gleam from the setting sun. He could remember himself crouching in the hallway, half-drowsy, waiting for Sakumo to unlock the door, to give his obligatory ' _I'm home',_  so that Kakashi could call back a soft  _'welcome home',_  because diligent solider Sakumo was, that was usually the extent of their interactions, though Kakashi craved for more.

Then he was eight, and that wretched man laid cold and empty on the tatami floor. Red seeped into the cracks. Kakashi remembered the numbness of his body, and that bitter voice in his head laughing at his wasted childhood, because he’d tried so hard to impress his father, but that _coward_ had no qualms leaving him without a word.

Kakashi lunged at the silver-haired man before he registered his own actions, forcing the orange boy beside him to jump aside in shock.  _That_   _man_ just stood there, watching Kakashi approach, an indifferent look on his face. His own demons reared their heads – why did it hurt to see him so dismissive and unfeeling, because Kakashi had stopped caring for the opinion of others. _He_ showed him it was a needless weakness.

Kakashi’s fist lashed out, involuntary words on his lips. " _How dare you!"_  Kakashi hissed out. “You’re not welcomed, you coward, you bastard-“

A yellow flash grabbed his hand before it could pound down on the man's chest.

" _Kakashi_."

 Kakashi stiffened at his teacher's words. Slowly, his anger-fogged mind cleared, and he swallowed away his nightmares. Sakumo was  _dead_. He  _saw_ him die.

"Kakashi, meet Kabushi and Narui," Minato said as Kakashi’s brain recalibrated itself.

The young Kakashi held back his initial instincts to snarl and hiss at the sight of that familiar face. Now that he had a closer look, past the looming figure, past the long silver hair, past the balanced gait of a professional shinobi, and past whatever else that had made the man seem so familiar, Kabushi's characteristics slowly diverged from those of his father’s. Kakashi could see the resemblance between Sakumo and Kabushi, but there were subtle differences – the way Kabushi’s stance was willowy and slouched, the way Kabushi’s lone eye darted over them cautious, the way Kabushi’s relaxed smile never reached his eye.

“What the hell was that about, Bakakashi?” Obito murmured, to which Kakashi only ignored.

"And these are my little chunin: Kakashi, Obito and Rin," Minato continued over his student’s concerned gazes.

Rin dithered in hesitance, seeing the way Kakashi had snubbed Obito, but curiosity took the better of her.  She turned towards her teammate and asked, “Do you know Kabushi, Kakashi?”

“No,” Kakashi denied bluntly, head jerking away.

“Ah… Oh-“ She fumbled at his instantaneous rejection.

Kabushi shook his head with a sigh. When Rin looked over, his one visible eye crinkled up in a lazy smile, and said in a tone were just as lackadaisical, "He's my nephew.”

Kakashi’s eyes narrowed. "What do you mean nephew?" he said in a suspicious tone.

"You know, a son of one's brother or sister."

"I  _know_  what it means," the little genius snapped. "As far as I am aware, my father had no siblings."

Rin’s brows furrowed worriedly, and Obito looked excited at the conspiracy, but Kabushi only waved a hand dismissively. "Did he ever tell you that explicitly?"

"No," Kakashi conceded grudgingly. His father was usually quite tight-lipped about family, or perhaps Kakashi never asked. Even the topic of his mother was never spoken much about, let alone anything about an uncle. He’d always been afraid of bothering his father by bringing up something he seemed to prefer avoiding, because their time together was already limited, and Kakashi hadn’t ever wanted to do anything that drove him away.

Yet, if Kabushi was his uncle, what did it mean that he never came back until now, _seven years_ after Sakumo’s death. Where had he been when Kakashi had needed someone the most?

The man, ignorant to his thoughts, smiled at him. "I am Sakumo’s younger brother – your uncle by default. Nice to meet you, kid,” he said with a showy bow. “Now I'm told I'll be living with you? I can’t wait to get to know you, dear nephew."

Kakashi glanced over at Minato who just nodded right back at him. "Go ahead, Kakashi. We'll meet up again tomorrow. These two are on our team from now on." He gave a cheery laugh. "Lucky me; I get a five men team!"

Kakashi’s fist clenched as he turned on his heels. There was something about Kabushi that was slowly getting on his nerves. Perhaps it was how he looked, or perhaps what he could already tell of the man’s personality from their few exchanged words. Kakashi didn’t want to do this.

He started down the road. "Are you coming or not?" Kakashi all but snarled, composure wearing thin.

His uncle’s face just drew up in a larger smile as he followed. "Calm, kid. A  _good_  ninja needs patience," he chimed casually back.

Obito and the orange kid cackled in the background. Kakashi growled in response, storming the way back home.

"I hate you," he muttered, when they were far enough away that Minato couldn’t hear and scold him for his words.

"Honesty is good," the man commented back, smile never leaving his face.

Kakashi really,  _really_  hated him.


	3. Let's Begin

Kakashi groaned as his alarm rang sharply in his ear. He groggily slipped out of bed, pushing his cover aside, and checked the time. Six-thirty on the dot. That gave him thirty minutes, more than enough time, to get dressed and meet his team at seven o'clock sharp.

He didn't live in the old Hatake house anymore. After his father's death, he moved into an apartment, unable to stand the old house, full of ghosts and stained blood. It was a small, cozy apartment with three main rooms - the bedroom, a kitchen, and a living room. It was big enough for one person. Two, and it was slightly cramped. He did, however, enjoy ordering his uncle to sleep on the couch (not that he would admit it, of course).

Kakashi sniffed the air as he opened his bedroom door, brow narrowing downwards at the unexpected scent.

"Finally up, are we?" a lazy voice drifted through the air.

The silver-haired boy looked up to see his uncle standing awkwardly in an apron, holding two plates of pancakes in his hands. "Figured you might want some breakfast," the man said.

The boy froze in place, staring at the scene before him. Somewhere in his mind, he remembered this sight, this feeling, buried deep in the crevices of his memories. His mind drew a flash of silver hair on another man, during those rare weeks Sakumo was in between missions. He remembered the man's beaming smile when Kakashi stumbled into the kitchen, lured by the smell; his eyes in anticipation as Kakashi took bites of his homemade food. It was…

Kakashi banished the thought.

"Thank you," he said neutrally, because Kabushi was only doing his job. It was the obligation of a family member to take care of the younger. Nothing more.

He eyed the pancakes Kabushi settled on the table as though they would leap at him at any moment. It was odd, not having to make breakfast himself. He'd been forced to independence since early in life. Having homemade food appear before him without needing to do work himself seemed almost like a  _foreign concept_ _._

"You're supposed bring it up to your mouth. Chew, swallow, and repeat," his uncle, Kabushi, reminded him, his lone visible eye already in a U-shaped crease of a smile, as Kakashi continued to stare unmovingly at the plate before him. "You'll get the hang it of eventually," Kabushi commented.

The teen's eyes narrowed into a glare, while the older Hatake gave him a pat on the head. "Well, I guess if it's too embarrassing, I'll give you and your food some privacy." He got up, and Kakashi noticed that somehow, the man was already finished eating. Kabushi held up a tired hand in a mock wave, "See you on the training ground."

Alone once more, Kakashi lowered his gaze onto the pancakes. The table suddenly seemed to grow larger, and he felt  _something_  in his chest he couldn't recall enough to describe. It was gone by the time he hooked his finger around his mask to pull it down to cautiously inspect the food before him.

**WWtCH**

"He's late again," Kakashi complained, arms crossed. He stood in their designated Training Grounds with Minato-sense, Rin and, that Narui kid waiting impatiently for Obito to show up.

Minato consoled with the usual, "It's only been an hour, Kakashi. Obito will be here soon."

The silver-haired boy rolled his eyes. Kakashi was sick and tired of Obtio's excuses, but the idiot never got it through his thick skull how improper it was for a shinobi to be unable to follow a rule as simple as this. Minato sat on the ground with that orange boy and Rin talking about their day, like it was an excusable problem.

Didn't anyone else mind?

A bush on his left shook, and Kakashi tensed as he looked over to it with a kunai in hand. A mob of black hair popped out, orange goggles under them, over the face of one, Obito Uchia.

"Sorry!" the boy yelled quickly, hopping out, "There was a black cat in my path so I had to take another one, and…"

Kakashi threw up his hands in anger. "You liar. You're a shinobi, follow the  _shinobi rules and regulations_!"

"Don't be like that, Kakashi," Minato said, holding his hands out in a calming gesture.

"He's a  _chuunin_ , not some pre-genin who spends their day playing. He needs to act like one."

The orange boy shrugged. "It's no biggie," Narui joined in, irking Kakashi even more with their collective nonchalant at the blatant disregard for rules, "Besides, it was only an hour."

"Just an hour? Are you saying we should ignore regulations? A ninja a diligent and  _on time._  Obtio has not just been late for one day; it's an hour late  _every single day._ Even Academy students know better than that," Kakashi snipped, glaring at Obito who was snarling back at him.

Narui let out a short laugh. "Exactly, just an hour. I've had worse. 'Sides, Ka- Kabushi-sensei's not here yet."

Kakashi tsk'ed, annoyed, because Narui's defence was full of holes. Just because he had been stood up for longer than an hour before did not make Obito's tardiness any less of an offense. Although, Narui  _was_  right about one thing; where was his uncle? A _Hatake_  should know better than to come late, especially if Kabushi left the apartment  _before_ he did.

The air beside him swirled unnaturally the moment he thought that, and a second later, Kabushi in his silver-haired glory appeared with a saluting, "Yo."

With a kunai in hand posed to stab, Kakashi glared at his sad-excuse of an uncle. "You're late."

The man merely smiled at him, dismissing his accusation with a simple wave of a hand. "Well, you see, there was this black cat, and it crossed my path, and we all know that's bad luck, so I turned around and took a bath to rid of the curse. Then while I was at it, I decided to make some brunch to eat since I was at the apartment anyways." He gave a bright smile, looking much too innocent for it to be nothing but a lie.

"I told you there was a cat," Obito declared, prodding the boy's side in a ' _I told you so_ ' manner. Kakashi growled under his breath and shoved the Uchiha away. For all he knew, the two of them collaborated on that story.

"Hey, you're early for once!" Narui cheered from behind, startling the young silver-haired boy out from his fuming state.  _Early_? It'd been more than an hour, and frankly Kabushi beat Obito's record.

The older man's eye retained that happy crease Kakashi was starting to hate. "I figured it was a special day, so my obligatory three hours tardy streak could wait for another meeting," Kabushi replied, sound much too serious for that to be a joke.

 _Three_ hours?

Minato obviously felt the same way. "You're usually three hours late?" he asked warily, and for once disapproving of unpunctuality, unlike the dozens other times they had to wait for Obito to arrive.

"At  _least_!" Narui moaned in response, "The longest he's kept us - me waiting is five hours.  _And_ he told me not to eat breakfast if I didn't want to throw up from his training. Can you believe him?"

Minato tsked at Kabushi who chuckled sheepishly.

"Five!" Rin exclaimed, because that single hour they had to wait for Obito already tested her patience sometimes. Yet Narui had no choice to wait because Kabushi was his sensei. "What do you do to end up five hours late?" Rin wondered out loud.

"He gets lost on the road of life," Narui answered with a grin.

"Maa, don't forget Narui, I stop to help little old ladies carry their bags across the street too," the man added pointedly. Kabushi didn't even look ashamed.

Kakashi stared incredulously, finger twitch on his hold of his kunai. His posture tense ready. Minato-sensei stood up, dusting off his pants and quickly got to business, before the teen acted out his anger. "Err, I'm glad we're all vigilant shinobi, but getting back at the task I had planned for today…"

His ninjas professionally snapped to attention.

* * *

 

Training with the Yellow Flash was just like how Kabushi remembered it to be. The man was kind and helpful, but also strict when it was needed. Opposed to the hand-off method Kakashi used to teach his own Team Seven, urging his kids to make their own decisions and challenge each other, while he stood in the sidelines watching over them, Minato was hands-on the whole way, actively working with his kids and guiding them along the way with encouraging praises. Each to their own, Kakashi supposed - there was no proper way of teaching shinobi, after all. Minato-sensei was intelligent, curious, and always looking for a challenge, while Kakashi was apathetic and better suited in supervision - their methods suited their own style.

Minato wasted no time integrating the two travelers into their training. It was the second day at Training Area 57 and he was already asking them for a mock spar.

"You feel up to it, Kabushi?" Minato asked with a blinding grin that was everything Kabushi remembered of the good ol' days. Of course he was.

"Oh oh!" Narui cried enthusiastically, running up to them and hopping up and down in excess excitement, "Let me, let me!" the teen begged. The constant flickering of Narui's eyes onto Minato's figure told Kabushi more than he needed to know about the source of the blond's energy - Naruto really wanted to test himself against the man he looked up to.

"Uh, well…" Minato began, looking apologetic, because he'd noticed Kabushi had been a second away from accepting his challenge already.

"Let him," Kabushi insisted, "Let us postpone our spare for another day, Minato-san." It was every boy's dream to fight against the Fourth once in their lives; even more so for Naruto who's long-time idol was also his father. Besides, it was better like this - while Naruto wasn't exactly chakra exhausted, he did still have less chakra than usual. Hopefully that would stop the boy from getting too out of control as Naruto tended to do in friendly spars. More so now that Naurto had Sasuke back and ready to butt heads with him daily.

Kabushi tracked his student's happy clamber over to where Minato was standing with narrowed eyes, trying to project his plead into the boy's mind.  _Don't mess up, Naruto._ The blond gave him a small nod in understanding, before most likely forgetting everything when his eyes then lit up at the idea of bonding with his dad.

Kabushi sighed.

"You ready, kid?" Minato grinned, slipping into a ready stance with the  _seal of confrontation_  held before him.

Narui followed suit. "You bet'cha, old man!" the boy cheered, cracking his knuckles, "On your mark!"

Minato chuckled, "Old man? I'll show you old." Then, true to his namesake, in a flash of yellow, he was gone. The fight had officially begun.

**WWtCH**

"So, how much do you want to bet Narui's gonna loose to our Sensei?" Obito asked, stretching on the grass where the other four of them were  _supposed_ to be training on their own. However they were too busy observing the spar to do anything else. Well, three of them were. Little Kakashi was diligently following orders, after only a brief argument with Obito when the other teen wouldn't listen. Still, it wasn't hard to spot Kakashi's unpolished movements as his attention was clearly elsewhere, head occasionally turning too much over to the two blonds on the field.

"Of course he will," Kabushi replied carelessly, pulling out a book from his front pocket to help pass the time.

Rin gave Kabushi an exasperated look. "You don't have faith in Narui's abilities?" the girl asked in a chiding tone, "He's your student, isn't he? I'm sure he's also quite strong."

Kakashi hummed undiscernibly, flipping the page of his orange book. "Hmm, maybe," the man finally acknowledged with a shrug, smiling internally at the sweetness of her. If Kabushi wouldn't encourage Narui, she didn't hesitate to take up the job, because everyone deserved positive reinforcement.

Obito frown at his nonchalant mannerism. "So you think Narui has a chance?" he clarified, since Kabushi's answers were all over the place. He wondered if the Hatake was even properly listening to them anymore, engrossed in the book as he was.

"Nope."

"Huh?"

"Narui is strong when he's passionate enough," Kabushi clarified to Obito's confusion, "but, well ... he's an idiot," he said idly, never looking up.

As to prove him correct, Narui suddenly gave a little " _Hey_!" from where he was, turning to them with his hand on his hips, "I heard that, Sensei! Who're you calling an idiot? I'll-"

Minato took Narui's distraction as an opportunity to attack. With a swift kick, Naruto was launched to the ground, thrown back ten feet away. Naruto spat out grass from his mouth. "Hey, I wasn't ready," he whined, but he was up and rushing for Minato a second after.

"What did I tell you?" Kabushi sighed.

In the field, the two blonds duked it out, trading blow for blow. Naruto was naturally fast. Not nimble, but quicker than most of his fellow rookies. His speed, stamina, and unnaturally large reservoir of chakra were nothing to scoff at.

Minato, on the other hand, had his intelligence and speed. Speed that not even Naruto could match. He wasn't called the Yellow Flash for nothing, after all. And so, Naruto quickly found himself in a bind - it turned out no matter how strong he was, if he couldn't hit the man he was after, there was no fight worth talking about.

The younger blond threw another punch again, just barely missing the Jounin as the older man turned away.

"Dammit, you old geezer, stay still for a second!" Narui cried out in frustration.

Minato responded with a swipe of his leg, successfully tripping the poor boy. "If I'm so supposedly old, and you can't touch me, just how old does that make  _you_?" he teased good-naturally.

Another punch was thrown at the man, only to have him disappear in a blink of an eye, in a haze of yellow. "Shoot-"

Naruto slid on the ground, clutching his head. "Ow ow ow! Stop hitting me! Stop dodging!" the boy howled in pain.

"You can do better than this, Narui!" the Namikaze cooed, his tone still as teasing as ever, "This old man's not even gotten a hit on him yet!"

Naruto growled in response before his eyes lit in mischief at his challenging words. Never take Naruto as one to back down on a direct challenge. "Oh, you want to get bruised?" Narui retorted. His fingered formed a familiar cross as he focused on the other man before him; so focused he didn't even notice Kabushi hissing out a quiet  _'Don't'_  at him.

" _Kagebunshin no Justu!"_ In an instant, the whole forest turned orange.

Minato faltered.

Before the Jounin's thought process developed anything future than the single thought of  _"How?"_  the whole gang of Naruis took advantage of his hesitation. Like orange leaves during mid-autumn, they descended down, covering every inch of the floor. Not even the Yellow Flash could escape an attack like that without being scratched.

The boy whooped in triumph, surrounding the other man. "You don't mess with Narut-"

" _Futon: Daitoppa_!"(Wind Style: Great Destruction) A flurry of wind tore out from the center of the explosion, shredding everything in its path. The Naruto clones quickly dispersed by fives and tens from the lash of wind, successfully cutting down their numbers by more than half.

The boy in the in orange jumpsuit could feel his heart thump with excitement. His dad was so strong. It was like everything the history books had said, and then some. He was so giddy and pumped.

The remaining Narutos leap towards the closest tree trunk, using it as a hgard surface to propel themselves towards the future Hokage.

The man disappeared yet again.

"Damn it!" they yelled in unison, before they all crashed into each other and dispelled on their own. Naruto, alone once more, pushed himself off the ground. "You're not doing that to me again!" He grabbed a handful of shuriken.

"Oh really?"

Again, there was a flash of yellow, and Naruto found himself pushed to the ground, arms pinned behind his back, his throwing stars scattered around him. "You think that's going to stop me?" Naruto sang, lips widening into a toothy grin.

Before he could continue, a scold from Kabushi cut him off.

"Wha-at?" Narui whined, limps losing their tenseness as he flopped to the ground at his teacher's order.

Kabushi shook his head, putting away his book. He strode towards the two blonds with a calm smile on his lips. "I think you've have had more than enough exercise today," he told his student firmly.

"But I'm not tired yet, Sensei! It was just getting good!"

Minato helped the younger boy up, glancing over at the older Hatake. "Is he giving too much away?" he murmured softly, in an almost accusing tone. His face, however, was schooled into a look of indifference. His sharp eyes glinted as he focused on Kabushi's face.

The elder Kakashi blinked slowly. "What?" he asked, feigning confusion. But he wasn't surprised at Minato's justifiably suspicious manner because the jutsu that formed that mass of orange wasn't hard to miss. "I just didn't want the kid to sprain anything; he just got out of the hospital a while ago, you know," Kabushi lied nevertheless.

"Care to tell me where you learnt the  _Kage Bunshin_?" Minato asked instead, turning towards Narui.

Narui frowned. "The …" And here, he finally realised the problem. He learned in a scroll, a  _forbidden_  scroll found in Konoha, because the  _Kage Bunshin_  was a Konoha technique that was highly guarded. Narui shrugged, "Some guy lied to me," he said succinctly, skimming over the truth, "There was a secret he wanted and he lied to me to get it, so I stole the technique from him and never told him."

"Did this guy have a name?" Minato questioned. Just how did 'some guy' come across the  _Kage Bunshin_ , only to have it stolen away by a fifteen-year-old. How did a fifteen-year-old master the  _Kage Bunshin_  in the first place? And what did the guy lie to Narui about? There were more question generated from Narui's answer than resolution.

Narui only crossed his arms, brow furrowing as he thought of his past. "It's kinda hard to remember someone's name when it turned out he was trying to frame me, and kill me and Iruka. And it turned out he was a nasty traitor who was lying to Iruka as well for half his life," Naruto growled out at last.

" _And that was a bit too much truth,"_  Kakashi thought to himself, hand ready to snap out to cuff the blond. But it seemed like Naruto was done ranting anyways. He didn't blame the boy and his anger, though. If he knew anything about Iruka-sensei, it was that the Chunin teacher had been one of the few people who saw Naruto for Naruto and not the beast in his stomach. He'd heard the report from the Third of how the man had taken a blow meant for Naruto, critically injured in the process. The man quickly became one of the most precious family in Naruto's life.

Minato stored the name away, making note to rely the story to his Hokage. Narui's explanation was passionate and Minato didn't believe it was false. Narui was the type to splay his emotions on his face for all to see. Kabushi, on the other hand, was like Kakashi, seemingly indifferent, but complex underneath it all. Minato felt he could read Kabushi as easily as he could read the man's nephew - perhaps he had a gift for reading Hatake emotions?

"Se-n-se-i!" Obitio yelled abruptly, cutting him off from his thoughts, "are we continuing training or not?"

"Yes, yes," Minato called over. He gave the two newcomers a slight warning glance, before warming up again. "Coming?" he asked.

Narui quickly brightened up as he bounded over with Kabushi in tow.

* * *

 

"I'm boreeeed, Sensei!" Obito drawled out sleepily with a yawn, later that week.

Kakashi couldn't help but agree with the Uchiha, not that he would ever say it out loud. "Why are we doing D-ranked missions again?" he asked instead.

The blond smile amicably, kneeling on the muddy ground along with his students. "I figured we should keep it easy, seeing as our two new members just recovered recently." He pulled up another weed and tossed it to the growing pile beside him.

"That was almost weeks ago, Sensei!" orange-goggled boy whined.

"Now, now," Minato consoled, "Let them rest."

For weeks, Team Seven fell into a relatively relaxed routine schedule of training and D-ranked missions. Especially relaxed, considering Obito and Kabushi's (mainly Kabushi's) chronic lateness. Minato'd managed to get the man to reduce his tardiness from three hours to two after taking a glance at Kakashi's fuming face each day. Narui just laughed in the sidelines.

Minato snuck a glance at them. Narui was faring as well as Obito was, that is to say, slowly falling asleep. The boy, as he'd actually fought him already, was strong and had seemly never-ending chakra and stamina. He was easily Chuunin level, or maybe even higher. He was relatively hardworking especially when it came to training, and easy to get along with. He was also loud and occasionally obnoxious - especially when around Obito. Those two were two of a kind.

Kabushi … well, the first thing that came to mind about him was lazy. He was the complete opposite of Kakashi. He slouched, dragged his feet, ignored people, was late, and came up with ridiculous, Obito worthy, lies.

But Minato knew better than to judge people from their displayed personality - especially ninjas. There were times when he'd see a glimmer of  _something_  in those supposedly lazy grey-blue eyes of his. Minato, in fact, kept an eye on the other man the whole time he fought the younger blond. Kabushi pretended to be bored, but his eyes flickered with the fight and he grimace at all the right moments.

And even now, the man, he could see, could certainly multitask.

Kabushi was squat down on the ground, orange book in one hand, other hand mechanically pulling weeds out of the ground.

…hm, a book right now seemed like a really good idea, actually.

**WWtCH**

Little Kakashi looked over at his  _very_  sorry-excuse of an Uncle, who had his face buried in a little orange book.

"You should be working," he bit out.

The older man gestured to his pile of weeds without looking up.

Kakashi frowned at him. "You really -"

"Hey, is that book any good?" a voice called over. Minato-sensei grinned, walking over, wiping his hands on his pants. "You seem quite engrossed in it."

"You don't want to read it, Sensei," Kakashi replied for his uncle, in a rather disgusted tone.

The book shut with a snap as Kabushi stored it back in this inner vest pocket. The blank orange cover, or rather the flipped dust-cover of his  _Icha Icha_ , gave no clue to the title nor contents of the book. "I thought you liked it," Kabushi teased.

A blush creped on the boy's face, and Minato curiosity grew, wondering what could aggravate the normally stoic boy so much. "It's  _porn_!"

"Where?" Obito bounded over with Naruto in tow. Rin's growing blush proved she was eavesdropping on the conversation as well.

"Did I forget to mention that Kabushi-sensei's a pervert?" Narui asked cheerfully as he approached.

"Evidently," Kakashi murmured from under his mask.

Obito bursted out laughing. "Jeeze, Kakashi, I didn't know you were such a closet perve-"

A kunai was held to his throat from an enraged boy. "I did not ask him to share it," he declared heatedly.

"Boys!" Minato chided, "No fighting. Besides, it's perfectly normal for a boy-"

"Sensei!" Kakashi all but whined. No. He didn't. Hatakes don't whine. He  _interrupted._  "It's  _his_  fault." He pointed at his ever grinning Uncle.

"Don't be like that. I asked if you wanted a bed-time story and you wouldn't answer me, so I took that as a  _'yes_ '."

"It meant ' _are you stupid'_ , not ' _yes'_."

Kabushi shrugged, "Maa, how was I supposed to know?" He blinked innocently, "Say, you want to know what happened after Kaiyuki fell into the hotspring while running after the busty Shina on-"

Minato coughed, "Kabushi, please refrain from reading porn to my students."

The younger man shrugged again. "Alright." If the stretching of his mask was any indication, Minato could tell the man was grinning under it. " _You_  want to know about it then? Shina's a hot, busty woman with  _fiery red hair_  and a temper like no other. You should hear about all the things she can do to her man."

Clearing his throat, Minato looked away. "Anyways," he said quickly, least Kabushi start on the topic once more . "That's enough for now. We have another mission tomorrow. One I'm sure we'll all be grateful for," he said, looking back towards to Hokage tower. He gave his team a quick glance before strolling off. "Best we rest up for tomorrow."

* * *

 

**In the Hokage Tower:**

"You think they're ready?" Hiruzen asked, as Minato reported his daily observations to his leader.

"For the … C-rank? Yes, Hokage-sama."

The old man nodded thoughtfully, gaze cast out to the window of his office. The stone faces of the previous leaders stared back at him, like the strong, sturdy foundation of Konoha herself. "I hope it goes well," he replied mildly.

Minato smiled, "I have the utmost confidence in my team. In the whole team."

Though questionable their origins might be, the truth was, currently, there wasn't anything wary about the two. The strongest issue was Narui's knowledge of a forbidden Konoha technique, but even that had a reasonable explanation. At some point in life, the jutsu hadn't been forbidden as it was now, displayed for shinobi of all nations to see in battle. It was simple for shinobi to pick it up after trial and error, and record it down for their own allies. Narui could have easily met up with someone who had the knowledge under those conditions.

Beyond that, Kabushi was a diligent uncle, and Narui a polite house-guest. Kakashi fumed under Kabushi's teasing, but it seemed to be doing the teen favours, believe it or not, because instead of the stoic boy Minato was used to, the teen began showing his emotions more freely.

Hiruzen took a puff of his pipe. "This is your call, Minato," he replied to the blond's confident words. Minato knew them best by this point, better than anyone else. The man possessed good instincts, and Hiruzen placed his trust in his judgement. "I sincerely hope it goes smoothly. You leave tomorrow."

Minato bowed deeply, "I understand." Then, he shot the man a soft grin. "You worry too much, Hokage-sama. I have trust in those two. What can possibly go wrong?"

Hiruzen blew smoke between his lips slowly, as Minato was dismissed from his office. "Indeed, what could possibly go wrong?" he parroted back to himself warily.

Or were those famous last words…?


	4. Attacked already

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> To answer a question I go about why the hospital staff never saw Kakashi's sharingan… well, he was unconscious, as in with his eyes closed. And the scarring of his eye probably clued the nurses that the injury wasn't recent, so there was no need to check and disinfect.

Naruto gave a whoop as he jumped up in the air with a celebratory fist pump. "Alright; C-rank!"

Kakashi snorted in distaste, "And this pleases you? We were doing B-ranks and A-ranks before you two came along."

"We all needed a rest anyways, Kakashi. We can't always take high-ranked missions," Minato cut in, "Right?"

The boy rolled his eyes. "You just don't want to admit they're pulling us down," he murmured to himself. Narui fought without thinking, had too many similarities to the annoying Uchiha on his team, plus he wore florescent orange of all colours. His Uncle was lazy, half-blind, perverted, and giggled - yes,  _giggled_  - while reading that nasty little book of his. Team Seven could do a lot better without those two lowering their standards.

"We'll leave as soon as Kabushi gets here," Minato merely said.

Ah, yes, plus Kabushi was always late.

"I can't wait that long, Sensei! Let's just leave without him!" Obito whined impatiently. He rocked on his heels, unable to stay still. They finally had something other than D-ranks or training, and the anticipation was killing him.

"Now you know how we feel when  _you're_  late," Kakashi drawled mockingly.

The other boy gave a huff. "It's not like I do it on purpose…"

Rin sighed at the thought of an incoming fight between her boys. She purposely turned away, pulling Narui into conversation, because Obito was easily distracted and she knew the two were keeping an ear out over her.

"Hey Narui," Rin asked curiously, "is there any way to convince Kabushi to come on time?"

The blond shrugged, "I don't know; never tried. Kabushi-sensei does whatever he wants." He tilted his head. "But well, sensei already coming earlier than usual, isn't he?" he said because they'd managed to shorten his three-hour streak to two.

"Because that's a huge improvement," Kakashi muttered dryly, sarcastically.

Narui wasn't bothered by his attitude; in a way he reminded him of Sasuke and Narui was amused more than anything. "If it bothers you so much, you do something about it," he said, passing on the responsibility. He hummed and hawed to himself before lighting up with an abrupt idea, "Hey, I bet if you tell Kabushi-sensei you want to spend more time with him, he'll come earlier."

"You do it," Kakashi shot back, because he refused to be near his uncle more than necessary. The man was already living with him, and Kakashi hated it.

"But then it won't work!" Narui complained promptly, "Kabushi-sensei wants to get to know  _you_  better."

"That's stupid," Kakashi retorted. "I refuse," he said as bluntly as possible.

To the side Minato mused over Narui's idea to himself. Then his eyes lit up mischievously, almost mirroring the other blond. If Kakashi didn't know better, he would've sworn those two were related. "Like Narui said, Kabushi's tardiness really seems to bother you, Kakashi. Isn't it worth a harmless promise?" he contributed in a teasing tone.

The boy snorted. "Promise to spend more time with him?" Kakashi uttered harshly in ridicule, "I might as well promise to treat him lovingly for the being the thoughtful uncle he is," he mocked, because neither was ever going to happen. Ever. What sort of 'thoughtful' uncle was Kabushi if he insisted on persisting on being tardy, Kakashi's pet peeve, and tried to force porn literature onto him?

Speak of the devil, Kabushi immediately appeared in a swirl of leaves. "Did I hear my precious nephew say he'll love me dearly, and deeply like the lovely, cute nephew he is? Suffocating me in his adoration and affection like I've always wanted?" he crooned sweetly, eagerly, hateful smile on his face.

Kakashi twitched, because that was the only response he would allow seen by the older man. "No," he bit out, "but I'll suffocate you, alright." He crossed his arms, shooting Kabushi a narrowed gaze. "Were you spying on us?" he demanded.

"Of course not! Whatever gave you that idea?" Kabushi cried innocently.

"You expect me to believe the timing was a coincidence?" Kakashi muttered under his breath.

Kabushi happily ignored the contents of his words, focusing on the tone instead. Worse, he didn't even take note the tone was directed  _at_  him. "Muttering is a really bad habit for a shinobi. Especially if you're planning to be a commander," Kabushi offered helpfully, sounding so pleased at himself for assisting the growth of his nephew's shinobi career.

The boy fumed. "If you were here the whole time, you should have come out sooner. We have a mission to complete," he said, sharp and straight to the point.

Kabushi tsk-ed, "Don't be silly, I just got here a minute ago, dear nephew."

Kakashi grumbled and resisted his urge to roll his eyes. Kabushi brought out the worst in him - he felt like he pulled along the man's fun and games every time, and Kakashi hated how powerless he was against it. It was like Kabushi knew all the right buttons to push to get a rise out of him.

Minato's warm hand settled on his back, quelling the growing tense form he was becoming.

"Dare I ask what kept you this time?" the blond asked, as he lead the team towards the main gates of Konoha.

Kabushi followed casually behind him, eye lingering on the interaction between student and teacher. His expression seemed to soften before drawing upwards in his typical idle smirks, excuse ready as always. "Maa, I thought I heard Mr Ukki calling for me, but in the end, it turned out to only be his great grand-uncle," he grinned.

"I hope he wasn't in any danger," Minato responded off-handedly, already knowing not to read too much into the stories Kabushi fed them.

The silver-haired man let out a short laugh, "Nah, just a little dehydrated."

Naruto just raised an eyebrow at his sensei.

* * *

 

"Do you understand the mission?"

The five-man cell nodded in response. They were to go to the Land of Rivers and escort a young silk merchant to Konoha, where she would stay for a week, selling her rolls of brocade. Later, they would be assigned to escort her back as well.

"I didn't think traveling merchants would hire ninjas for bodyguards. How do you make money if you have for pay for escorts every time?" Rin asked curiously.

"Hmm, well, normally they wouldn't, but apparently the girl's father fell ill, and she wants to make his rounds for him," Minato answered, "But we really shouldn't be questioning our clients, Rin."

The girl flushed and dropped the topic. "Yes, Sensei."

The blond gave her an appreciative smile, before turning towards their newest members. "Have you two been there before?" he asked, curious.

Kabushi hummed a wordless reply, recalling his memories of that place. If he was correct, Land of Rivers was where they found their first Akatsuki hideout. He doubted the area was as dangerous as it was in the future. "I believe so," he answered vaguely, and didn't bother to elaborate. They were supposed travelers, after all, and it wasn't odd for them to have been around the nation.

It was a little later before conversation started once more. Rin was the root this time. Kabushi had noticed her glanced hesitantly at him over the journey to Rivers, slowly build up courage to ask. Kabushi didn't doubt his abrupt conclusion to the previous conversation had her worrying about prodding into his issues, though she was clearly curious.

"Kabushi," she began at last, and Kabushi looked over with an encouraging smile. Bravery deserved reassurance. "If you don't mind me asking… what happened to your eye?" There was a concerned glimmer in the depths of her eyes, and Kabushi felt flattered at being included in her care.

It was a shame Kakashi was nothing like her. "Knowing him, it's probably a stupid fashion statement," the teen said snidely.

"Ha!" Obito laughed, "Like you're any better. You guys have the same mask. So you're stupid yourself too?"

"Boys," Minato chided.

Kabushi let their familiar bickering wash over him. He touched the hitai-ate covering his left eye, glancing over at the two, recalling similar days of his own past. "It's a result of my stubbornness," he simply said, because the truth, or anything close, would be too much for them to handle. Maybe even too much for  _him_  to handle, really, because he still regretted it to this day.

Minato had seen the long scar underneath when he'd visited Kabushi it in the hospital. Out of courtesy of other's battle scars, he'd never questioned what happened to his eye. The scar had been deep, he'd noticed back then, and Minato doubted Kabushi's eye survived.

"Doesn't the depth-perception bother you? It must be hard being a ninja with a handicap like that," Rin wondered inquisitively.

The Hatake presented a gentle smile to the girl. "You get used to it," he said, bitterly adding, "It serves as a reminder of selfishness, and the pain and loss that it comes with." Rin nodded solemnly and stored his words away, because odd as Kabushi was at time, he said worthwhile things at times. Kabushi's voice was strained as he tilted his head back, staring into the distance, "Sometimes no matter how much it hurts, it's better to remember rather than to forget. Especially if it turns you to a better person because of it."

Even Kakashi wasn't able to find fault in his serious disposition. His view of the man was ever-changing; until now he'd always seen the man as an annoyance who only knew to joke. Yet from now, it was clear the man had his share of pain and loses.

True to a shinobi's ability, in a blink of an eye, Kabushi solemn expression suddenly held an indifferent mask of a smile once more, and the mood passed. Still, the team knew better than to doubt their sights.

"How about we rest for a bit?" Minato commented, stopping abruptly.

"We haven't gotten far yet."

Minato nodded agreeably but said, "Though this may be a C-rank, we need to keep on the top of our game. It's a good time to take a break. We can make up for the distance later."

The team settled to the ground, following his lead. The future hokage leaned against the tree trunk, stretching his arms above his head. " Narui, Kabushi, can you two secure the area?"

"Of course, Minato-sens- _san_ ," Kabushi answered, almost slipping because the command was too much like his years in the past, carrying out his sensei's orders."Come along, Narui."

The two darted cautiously from the main group, checking for any signs of danger along the way. Narui was laughing the whole way through.

"What's so funny, brat?" the silver-haired man asked.

The teen giggled to himself, teasing haughtily, "You're being order around too!"

Kabushi hummed. He supposed it was a rare sight because in their actual timeline, there weren't many who had rank to order him to action. Especially considering every time Naruto had missions with him present, Kakashi was typically the team commander. "I guess it's been a while since I've been told to follow orders instead of giving it," he said to indulge the boy.

"You're the same rank as me now!" Narui laughed, milking the event for all it was worth.

Kabushi quirked his eyebrow in response. That's what he got for entertaining the kid. "Oh-ho, it sounds like someone wants to be ordered around more." The humourless eye-smile came back in full force. "Don't forget I'm still your teacher,  _Naruto_." He waved his hand in a dismissing gesture, "Now go secure the area."

The demon-container frowned. "Hey! What about you, Sensei?" he demanded.

The Jounin merely held his smile, "I'll be here reading."

"Lazy," Narui retorted, stomping away.

"Yes, yes," Kabushi dismissed, face in book.

"Pervert!"

"I completely agree."

"Bum!"

"Hey, I resent that-" the older man cut himself off.

"Kaka… Kabushi-sensei?" Naruto asked.

The Jounin held a finger to his lips. "Shhh. I heard something." They sat in silence, ears alert. And yet there was no other sound.

Naruto glanced skeptically at his teacher. "Are you sure…" he began, but any doubt was gone as soon as he too heard the distinct sound of someone – several someones - disturbing the leaves of the trees ahead.

The older man jerked his head back, gesturing towards the others. "Narui, go warn the other four. I'll go see if I can make out who's out there."

The boy nodded wordlessly, jumping back.

Kabushi leaped forward, keeping on the trees. He weaved around the leaves, trying not to make any excessive noise. It was then he saw the ones behind the noise. There were roughly five of them, quite professional, judging from their movements and their silent form of communication with each other. Yet, they were too far for Kabushi to make out their hitai-ate or loyalties.

But the way they moved; slow, cautious, and wary, nudged at the time-traveler's paranoia. They were too slow, too cautious, too wary, especially if they were allied with the Land of Fire. They acted too careful in Leaf's land to be possible allies. No, they were hunting something, and Kabushi needed to warn Team Seven.

* * *

 

The silver-haired man retreated, eager to regroup with Narui to rely the information to Team Seven. He moved as quietly as ever – but not quietly enough, it seem, because he soon found himself locked in battle.

Kabushi leaped to the side as a fury of kunai lodged itself into the tree he was in. The man swore, twisting his body to face the enemy.

Men rushed at the Jounin, faces obscured by masks, and hitai-ates nowhere to be seen. For a fraction of a second Kabushi considered they were not shinobi – because even nuke-nin kept their headbands - however movements and chakra manipulations stated otherwise.

"Who are you?" Kabushi demanded, twisting to avoid yet another attack. "What country do you belong to?"

They snarled at him, never answering, and attacks doubling in strength every second.

With a kick of his legs, Kabushi launched himself into the safety of another tree. "State your loyalties or I shall be forced to engage in battle," he said, a mild bluff, because it was obvious Kabushi didn't have the upper hand, one-against-five as it was. They refused to talk. "Alright, have it your way." The silver-haired man drew his weapons. Before he had time to even throw them, the men were already in his face, brandishing swords to attack.

They were fast, Kakashi would give them that. It seemed like he'd underestimated them.

A shuriken whizzed past his face, lodging itself into the vest of one of the enemy. Kabushi jumped backwards, pushing off with a hand. "Thank you, Narui," he said calmly, recognizing the swirling chakra behind him.

"You're getting  _o-old_ " Naruto laughed as his eyes focused on the ninja ahead.

"Yes, yes, mock your teacher," Kabushi said idly, his attention also focused on the enemy nin. He leaped backwards as he heard his old sensei's voice, throwing shurikens in front of him to hinder the enemy from following.

"Minato-san."

The older blond nodded at him, surveying the enemy. He kept his chunins standing behind him, despite their protests. "Do you know what they want?" he asked crisply.

"No sir," Kabushi replied, "I can't see any headbands, but they are surely ninjas."

"I see." Minato tilted his head towards his back, "Kakashi, Obito, Rin, fall back. Secure the area behind us."

Obito scowled at the orders. "But Sensei, we can help with the fighting too!" he pleaded.

The blond gave a minuscule frown, "Obito, listen to my orders. I'll join you to give further instructions later. Now go."

Kakashi nodded, unable to disobey his commander, even though he was clearly ready for a fight. His eyes were narrowed, and limbs tense and loaded with weapons, ready to prove himself worthy in battle. It was too bad his belief in the rules and regulations stated that Minato's words could not be disregarded. Reluctantly, the three leaped away, leaving Minato, Kabushi and, Narui to face the enemy alone.

"Our orders, sir?" Kabushi asked once the kids were out of their sight.

Minato nodded, tilting his head towards Narui. "I want you two in front. I've seen what Narui can do, and I think he can handle it. You as well." The two of them suddenly ducked a volley of kunai, slipping behind a tree to finish outlining the strategy. Minato cut it as short as he could. "Narui in front left, Kabushi in front right. My kids are taking rear, and I'll be keeping an eye on both groups to assist. Questions?"

Kabushi nodded, biting his lip from expressing his desire to watch over the younger three as well. The life of shinobi were full of dangers, but recalling how the dangers of the past lost him Obito and Rin, made his heart clench in need to excessively protect them all. He'd lost them even when he had been so close by, unable to help – Kabushi almost feared this would be another case like that.

But no, Naruto needed help up front. Besides, there was no one Kabushi trusted more than Minato to watch over the kids of Team Seven.

"Understood," Kabushi replied. The silver-haired man leaped back towards the enemy approaching, feeling Minato's chakra grow smaller as the man retreated further and further away. With a quick detour to inform Narui of the plan, Kabushi quickly shifted all his focus on the enemy nin, engaged into battle.

* * *

 

Kabushi hadn't underestimated the enemy, but their strengths were above what he hoped.

He had a self-imposed restriction of using only common jutsu, which wasn't too hindering, other than the fact it too much fancy maneuvering that could be avoided. He needed to do this strategically without wasting chakra unnecessarily, especially considering just how  _many_ of them there were. He highly doubted he would be given may chances to attack, so every move counted.

Metal caught the light, and that was the only warning Kabushi got before a hidden ninjato slashed upwards at him.

"A weapon as well?" the Konoha time-traveller murmured to himself, already readjusting his battle plan to account for that fact. He shifted his lone grey-blue eye to look behind the man. The second nin had brandished out his large broadsword ages ago – not that it was really possible to hide in the first place.

The third enemy – yes, it was an unfair battle of three against one – stuck with the traditional kunai and shurikens. Although, Kabushi had a sneaking suspicion that he had a hidden weapon on him as well.

Six handseals later, Kabushi let out a long breath with a " _Katon: Great Fireball Jutsu."_  The scorching fireball caused the three enemy before him leap out of his way, squinting their eyes against the bright flame. That was all the distraction Kabushi needed.

He leaped at the first enemy, knocking the man down before he had time to recover. He spared some chakra for lightning clones to keep the other two busy while he took care of the first one.

The enemy was down just as a  _"God'dammit!"_  echoed from Naruto's side.

Kabushi spared a glance over to check on his student. True to Naruto's nature, the boy had a plethora of Shadow Clones running around trying to end things with brute force – which sounded more useful that it really was. The two shinobi Naruto was against knew how to work together, and know how to do it  _well_. Clones were knocked aside quickly and efficiently before they could do sufficient damage.

Unlike Kakashi, the boy's knowledge of jutsu was limited. In battle, Naruto always fell back to his trusty  _Kagebushin_  and  _rasengan_ , yet this time, other than the first jutsu, it was obvious his most powerful offense attack was sealed. It was much too recognisable. Worse, the jutsu's creator was present and he would know he never taught anyone but Jiraiya.

In the present, Naruto was growing furious. Kabushi could see the teen wanting to forget everything and  _rasengan_ everyone to finish the fight once and for all. Honestly, Kabushi didn't doubt that Naruto would do it too, if he still couldn't get anywhere within the next few minutes.

Kicking aside the fallen ninja he finally took down, Kabushi raced for the other two. He had to finish this quick and get to Naruto before he did anything stupid.

 _That_ , of course, was easier said than done.

Even if he could use his full power and famed jutsu, these men were  _good_.

The silver-haired man glanced over at his student, who was practically getting pummeled by the enemy. It hurt to see because his student should have to suffer like this when he so clearly was able, if he was only allowed to let loose. Yet he couldn't because Kabushi had the blond to promise him to keep his talents to himself, because they couldn't get caught in the past.

Kabushi was the reason Narui was hurting.

Kabushi let out a hiss of frustration. It would be hard and tiring, but they could still win this, couldn't they? A Jounin, a sage (who wasn't allowed to used his sage powers), a future hokage, and three chunins. They were plenty strong. They could-  **wait**.

_There was something wrong._

Every limb in his body froze momentarily, before he forced it to move.  _Breathe, Kakashi. Focus._

The silver-haired man cast out his chakra, trying to sense what had suddenly disappeared while he was busy fighting. Minato and the kids should've been right behind them – should've been close enough for Kabushi to sense, but there was  _nothing_  there.

 _Where were they?_ The Hatake knew Minato-sensei would take care of his students even if it cost him his life. That's why he left them under his care and focused entirely on the battle instead.  _But…!_

Their chakra signatures were  _missing_. Either they were too far away (but they shouldn't be; they were the rear guards!) or they were…  _dead…_

Kabushi's heart thumped in his chest, as he jerked his head around to attempt to catch a glimpse of the four who were supposed to be behind. He could still sense Naruto dashing about to the right of him, but  _where_ -

_**Slash** _

"Damn it," Kabushi hiss out in pain.

In front of him, the unknown enemy snarled. In his hand held a ninjato, much like the weapon of his fallen comrade. "If you have time to look around, you must really be begging to die, aren't you?" His blade reflected the sunlight dangerously, Kabushi's blood dripping off of it in victory. He rushed in for another attack.

"I don't have time for this," Kabushi snapped, clutching his arm to staunch the bleeding, "Where are the other four."

If possible, the ninja's smirk grew even larger, and suddenly, nothing mattered to Kabushi anymore. The knowing smirk was all the confirmation Kabushi needed. "Ah, the blond and those three weak little children-"

"No," Kabushi breathed out. He inhaled - a fruitless attempt to keep his emotions in check. " _No_." Everything swirled in his head.

Rin, Obito, little Kakashi, Minato-sensei… he couldn't lose them again. There was red coating his eyes, as the memory of their blood soaked bodies laid out before him. Obito with his hollow eye, Rin with her hollow chest, and Minato entwined in death with his precious wife. He'd failed them once – and what was he doing here if he was only failing them again  _before_ they were even scheduled to die?

Even without the necessary three handseals, Kabushi's hand started to glow blue. Electricity crackled around him, forcing the man to step back in fear. A sphere of blue electrical chakra swirled in Kabushi's right hand. His muscles screamed in pain as he pushed himself into a blindingly fast leap towards the enemy nin."What the  _hell_ did you do to them?"

The one in front of him, hand still clutching the dripping ninjato, had no time to dodge. The one with the broadsword just barely had time to put the weapon between themselves and the crackling ninjutsu.

" _Raikiri!"_

The ball of electricity lodged itself into his blade, shattered it, and proceeded to crash into the enemy's blocking arms. Then momentum blew both men back. They were flung towards the rocks behind them, colliding into it painfully to create craters of an unbelievable sizes.

Kabushi's fingers stung from the slightly overcharged  _Lightning Cutter_  but he paid it no heed.

From the corner of his eye, he saw the shinobi who'd been fighting on Naruto's side running towards him.

He had to stay and fight… but…  _Obtio, Rin, Kakashi, Minato-sensei…_  he had to find them too, before it was too late. Kakashi swore at the conundrum, leaping further back; towards Konoha. So much for keeping their identities a secret. His right hand swiped his blood, slamming it down to the ground as he landed.

Keeping their secrets didn't matter if Team Seven died before their time. Kabushi was already filled with endless regrets from their past deaths, and this time, not just him, but Naruto would never forgive himself when he realised they were the cause of the team's  _early_  deaths in this timeline. Because Team Seven wouldn't have taken this mission if it weren't for them, and Team Seven wouldn't have forced Minato's attention to be so split between the two groups, thus lowering his efficiency, if it weren't for them.

The ground glowed from Kabushi's jutsu. It struck Kabushi for a moment that the jutsumight not even work, because thought he did sign the summoning scroll, these weren't his ninken – not really. However, no one could track better than Pakkun and the pack, and Kabushi had to try.

" _Kuchiyose no_ -" The rest of the summoning jutsu died on his lips suddenly as his nose caught a scent he hadn't notice earlier.

Kabushi straightened slightly, sniffing the air again. His eyes trained on the oncoming ninjas in front of him, his hand still on the ground in the middle of his summoning. The stench of blood still lingered in the air, but less prominent now that he was further away, allowing him to pick out the other traces that swirled in the air.

Kabushi sorted through the smells assaulting his nose, trying to locate the scent once more.  _And_ _... there!_

The recognition clicked and Kabushi fumbled to hold his reaction from showing. Then his eyes narrowed in thought because  _h _e__  was here, and here was the last place he should be.  _So why…_? And what did this mean for the fate of Minato and the Team Seven kids?


	5. Why Him?

The Hokage sat behind his desk. His hands clasped in front of his face in thought. In his mouth, he chewed his pipe - a habit he developed not long after obtaining the role of the Sandaime. Before him stood one of his loyal shinobi.

Hiruzen nodded at his man, "It seems you were quite right," he noted idly, calm as though he had known it all along.

The ninja nodded, a small smirking smile playing on his lips at the Hokage's bluff, but his voice was respectful as always. "Yes, there was nothing for you to worry about, Hokage-sama." Because he  _knew_  he had worried.

"No, I shouldn't have doubted your judgement," Hiruzen replied, shaking his head, "You do know them best, don't you?"

The man gave a little laugh, blond hair shaking from the movement. "We-ell," he said cheerfully, "we had every right to suspect the two 'travelers', and a sudden battle definitely allowed for us to finally see their true selves…"

The Hokage nodded thoughtfully, thinking back. "True, true," the old man agreed, "and the results were quite pleasing," he added as tension slowly fell from his shoulders. "You seem to have quite the ability to judge people."

In front of Hiruzen, the man gave another laugh. A small grin bloomed on his face. "I sure hope I do," he said. He ran a hand quickly through his blond hair. "I place all my trust in Team Minato," the man in charge of the five-men cell said, confidently and proud. "Or else I wouldn't have come to you proposing this."

And really, there was no way his trust could have been misplaced. Not after the display Kabushi put on once he realized that his teammates were missing. In fact, both Kabushi and Narui seemed to have bonded with Team Seven more than Minato had expected.

That was a great thing indeed.

The Sandaime gave another puff on his pipe. "That young man is quite unexpected," he commented in a quiet murmur, just loud enough for the Jounin in front of him to hear.

Minato couldn't help but nod, mind reeling back to the past fight. "He'll make a strong ally," the blond stated positively.

Hiruzen agreed, but his face didn't share Minato's cheeriness. "And a terrifying enemy."

* * *

 

**Half a day ago, end of battle:**

Kakashi mind went on overdrive. Why was  _he_  of all people here?

To make sure he hadn't been imagining things, he had discreetly changed positions to sniff the air again, and yet the scent was still present – and fresher than ever. He  _was_  here. But there was no reason for this to be.

The masked man tried to calm himself, brain whirling to understand. Had he done something wrong for it to this point? For that man to come here and attack them without warning?

Everything appeared fine when Team Minato departed for their mission. The fact that they were given a mission was evident that the Hokage trusted Narui and him.

Yet how did things change in such a short period of time?

... _Change?_

The man froze abruptly, a thought clinging into his mind. His lone grey-blue eye flickered as he surveyed the situation. What was to say anything _did_  change, Kakashi suddenly realised.

In a matter of second, the silver-haired time-traveller calmed down. His entire posture relaxed, though it wasn't too visible considering he was still vigilant against the attacking men.

Knowing what he now did, Kabushi doubted Narui and him would truly be killed by these shinobi - badly injured, perhaps, but not dead. Yet Kabushi just wanted the farce to end.

 _He_  might have realised, but Narui didn't. Excluding the fact Narui was more than ready to rage out will all his actual skills, Kabushi hated the sight of his battered student.

Against instincts, Kabushi forced himself to look away from the incoming men. Idly, as though he hadn't a care in the word, Kakashi gave a casual wave of his hand, turning momentarily towards the origin of the scent.

"Have we done something to warrant this?" he wondered aloud, directed towards that general area. "Is this an ambush to secretly dispose of the two of us?" Kabushi asked, half-jokingly, using such morbid humour only because he didn't believe it to be true. He pushed the focus of the oncoming attacker to the back of his mind, straining most of his senses towards the hidden man.

There was no answer from him.

Without turning, Kabushi dodged yet another attack, jumping even closer to the hidden shinobi. "I know you're there. The Hatake nose has always been hailed rival to your Inuzukas'," the masked man stated softly. "Standing downwind doesn't help. Wind currents change rapidly, and all this fighting in front of you causes quite the whirlwind."

Kabushi touched his hiat-ate, to make sure it was fixed in place, before approaching. The closer he came, the angstier the enemy nin became, and it assured the silver-haired man he was heading the right direction. He leaped over a swing of the sword.

"I would hate to have to fight you," Kabushi said softly, then, "Hokage-sama," he hailed directly, so the man was certain there was no doubt who Kabushi had recognised. There was a pause. "And quite frankly fighting your Anbu is tiring," he added lightly, tilting his head towards the attackers.

Silence greeted his comment.

Kabushi shook his head. Let this be a show of his loyalty then, Kabushi proposed, and then stood still before the rushing men. "If you believe I have done wrong, I will accept my punishment. I will not fight against the Village I have pledged my alliance to," Kabushi stated calmly, even as his instincts screamed against his action.

Kabushi held a hand to his face, the other fell lax by his side. His body fell to his usual lazy slouch, center of balance all wrong to be able to react on time. He was emitting an aura that spoke of his reluctance to retaliate. "Do as you will," he acquiesced.

The enemies (Anbu) rush forward towards Kabushi without hesitation, even at his announcement, arms raised, ninjato, and broad swords ready. The time-traveller stood and stared without as much as a twitch. Kabushi watched, eye sharp and calm as bodies before him twisted, muscles bulged, as their weapons came forward as they brutally  _ **slashed-**_

" _CEASE!"_

Everything froze on command.

Nobody even seemed to even dare to  _breathe_  until a comment called out from the sidelines. "Eehh? Why're you here, old man –er – I mean, Hokage … sama?"

Kabushi's eye flickered to his left where Naruto had slid off to when he heard the Third's voice. He glanced back in front of him, a ninjato a mere hair's breadth away from his face. For a while, there was nothing but silence as both parties stood erect and still, waiting for their Hokage's orders.

And then, Hiruzen walked forward, finally emerging from where he had hidden himself throughout the battle. His dark onyx eyes stared a calculative gaze at the Hatake before him. "What if I had not called them off?" he stated, voice betraying nothing. There was no talk of if the Anbu could not stop in time, for Anbu did not fail.

Kabushi shrugged, pulling down his hitai-ate. Sometime between declaring he wouldn't fight back, and the Anbu closing in on him, the headband had innocently slipped up, revealing the scarred, closed eye underneath.

"We-ell," Kabushi, for in his Hokage's presence he would never be seen as  _'Kakashi'_ , drawled lazily, "I'd like to think that I wasn't  _completely_ distrusted by my honourable Leader…" a hint of hopefulness weaved into his voice.

Hiruzen studied the taller man intently. Kabushi politely stood under the old man's burning gaze without a word, allowing the Hokage to see all there was to see. Because if anything, his love for Konoha was as great as, if not more, than every other ninja under the old man's control. And honestly, Kabushi wished the Hokage would realise this as well.

A moment passed as the two men stared impassively at each other. Then, as if finally accepting what he had to say, the Sandaime suddenly nodded, head tilting back to Konoha. His Anbu disappeared in a whirl of leaves without a word.

Then, as though a veil was lifted from the world, everything seemed to return back to normal. The Third smiled, all signs of tension immediately absent. He looked back at the remaining two shinobi on the field. "Well then, let us head back," he said peacefully, like nothing was wrong.

Naruto frowned. "Old –er – Hokage, what about the mission?" he wondered, cerulean eyes wide and confused.

"The mission is over," Kabushi answered for him.

"What? Did we fail? What happened to the little girl?"

" _We_  were the mission."

"Huh?" Naruto furrowed his brows in thought. Slowly, he recalled how the enemy nin all seemed to follow the Hokage's orders with the utmost respect. They weren't doing it out of fear either. "You mean … this was all a  _test_?" he asked as realisation struck.

"Good," Kabushi murmured, glad Naruto was keeping up.

Naruto, in turn, looked crossed between delighted at being complimented, and horrified at the thought of his beloved Jiji attacking them. In the end, the boy settled with a large grin – a meaningless grin that held nothing behind it. It was, Kabushi noted, Naruto's façade when he didn't know what to do. He'd seen it plenty times enough to recognise it.

As the three Konoha-nin marched back home to the village, dreaded silence clung to the air. Naruto was too unsettled by the minor act of betrayal from his old man to chatter mindlessly, and Kabushi didn't feel like talking while the Hokage was within earshot. Hiruzen was fine with quietly observing the two ninjas beside him from the corners of his eyes.

But, no matter how Naruto was feeling, silence never bonded well with the blond. So, as Kabuhi had expected, not too long later, the boy broke the hush. "Hey, sensei, where are you?" Narui suddenly asked.

Kabushi's even strides gave nothing away. " _I'm_  right here," the silver-haired man tried to correct without stirring up any more suspicion from their Leader.

Narui blink. "Oh." He looked around, "I mean the little guy who looks like you."

"You mean  _Kakashi_."

"Err, yeah," the blond rubbed his neck nervously, "Yeah …  _mini-you_."

Kabushi rolled his sole visible eye, shaking his head. "I suspect he – along with the rest of the team – is back at the village, waiting for our assessment to be over." He glanced over at the Sandaime for confirmation.

The old man nodded. "Correct."

The blond pursed his lips at that. A moment later he nodded to himself, "Well, I'm glad they're safe, at least," Naruto said.

Kabushi's masked face was blank as he patted his student gently on the head. "Yeah, me too," he murmured softly, and the Hokage could hear the sincerity in his voice. "Me too."

* * *

 

**Present:**

Kabushi slipped into the woods of an unused training ground, mind set on working on his jutsus. After the little test the Hokage gave Naruto and himself, the Anbus watching them decreased ever-so slightly. Obviously they passed whatever criteria they were looking for.

It wasn't any surprise to Kabushi that they had passed. Whether they were in the past or future, Naruto and himself were proud, loyal shinobi of Konoha through and through. They would  _never_  let anything happen to a comrade if they could help it, because that was what Kabushi taught his precious students since the day he received them.

Kabushi sat down cross-legged on the grass, fingers locked in a ram symbol. He closed his eyes as chakra swirled around him.

A soft crunch sounded from behind the man. It was almost inaudible, but nothing the former Anbu Captain couldn't detect, especially because the opposition was nothing more than a young chunin. Kabushi turned slowly, allowing a grin to grow on his face, even at the annoyance of being interrupted. "Mmmm? My little nephew missed me so much he just had to seek me out?" he crooned happily, sounding so pleased it gave heartburn.

The figure behind the tree walked out stiffly. "Of course not." Kakashi snapped, silver hair glistening as he passed over a spot of light.

Kabushi could feel the boy's grey-blue eyes linger over his bandaged hand. He knew the teen's gaze wasn't from worry, and Kakashi's next words proved him right. "I want to know what jutsu you used," the kid demanded.

Kabushi tried a look of innocent confusion. "What jutsu? Where?"

That only caused the younger boy to roll his eyes irritatedly, a gloved hand jabbing at Kabushi's chest. "Look, the Hokage explained to Minato-sensei what happened after they shoved us back into the village. Since you lived with me, I obviously had the right to know too." His eyes narrowed into a glare, "You did some lightening jutsu to the Anbus, strong enough to break his sword  _and_  throw several men back. I want to know what it was." Kakashi demanded, eyes daring his uncle to refuse him.

Kabushi moaned dramatically, "Maa, that's no way to ask a favour."

Little Kakashi was anything but amused. "I'm the Hatake heir; I have the right to know." he demanded. And honestly, his uncle should be pleased to teach him, because they had to pass techniques along if they wanted what was left of the Hatake Clan to grow stronger.

The older Hatake, however, only shook his head. "How about you finish out the little quirks of your own jutsu first before learning something new?'

Kakashi froze at his words. "How did you know that?" he hissed. No one was supposed to know he was working on his own jutsu because he hadn't told anyone yet.

"Maa maa, I'm not  _that_  ignorant of what my sweet little nephew is up to." Kabushi drawled idly. "When you disappear off several hours on your own and come home exhausted, I can guess." Also the fact that Kabushi lived through little Kakashi's life already helped reinforce his deduction.

"I could just as likely been training," Kakashi refuted, though not a complete dismissal of Kabushi's words.

Kabushi nodded mildly, and explained , because he knew that was what the teen was waiting for. "I also know you have lightening affinity and those burn marks on your hands you come home with are from applying too much chakra. Knowing the little genius you are, I can assume you are either learning a new jutsu or creating one yourself. You only confirmed my guess."

Kakashi looked displeased at the fact he'd given himself away, but played it off with a common scowl. Then he pushed quickly on, "What does this have to do with you not teaching me? I can do both at once."

 _Other than the fact that it was one of the same jutsu he was trying to invent himself_ , Kabushi gave an ironical snort to himself. It was obvious he couldn't say that to his younger self, though, so he switched tracks. "Why do you want to learn it?" he asked instead, as if he was actually considering the possibility. If anything, that would get the teen to talk, lured by the chance of obtaining a new jutsu if he contributed in the conversation.

Kakashi's answer was prompt. "To get stronger," he said, and Kabushi could hear the  _'of course'_  to the end.

"For what?"

An eyebrow arched at his follow-up question. "What do you mean 'for what'? Of course it's for my duty as a shinobi of Konoha," he stated without hesitation.

The time-traveller tried not to groan into his hands even though he knew that answer was coming. Instead, he shook his head in mild disappointment. "If that's your final answer, you'll never get anywhere." Kabushi held up a hand to stall the boy when it looked like he was about to argue, "You'll never grow stronger thinking you're only doing something for  _duty_ or  _orders._  Don't you have people you love and want to protect? Your precious people?"

"Love is weak. The Shinobi Rules demand that ninjas should have no emotions ties pulling them down. We are tools to be used-" Kakashi recited, nothing like the kid who's life was forever changed by Obito's words and final act. Kabushi hated the morals he lived by before Obito's intervention.

"The rules be damned." Kabushi snapped. "Wanting to protect someone only makes you stronger." Naruto could preach for hours on the topic – probably had on many of their once-enemies. But as much as Kabushi wanted to drag the kid here to do the job for him, he knew it wouldn't work on his younger self because Kakashi would never take a shinobi like Naruto seriously. Naruto reminded the teen too similarly to Obito for Kakashi not dismiss his words on principle.

The older man let out a sigh.  _He_  was the only one who could expand his younger self's tunneled mindset. "Come, sit." He patted the grass beside him. "Oh, come on," the man urged, when Kakashi made no motion to comply, "Can't you at least  _pretend_  to be adorable and obedient once in a while?"

Kakashi narrowed his eyes at the man's order. He stood quiet and contemplative, as if trying to deduce the man's motives. He was clueless but curious, and he supposed sitting by his uncle would do him no harm. So after looking around to make sure no one was watching, Kakashi finally obliged.

"What now?" he demanded impatiently as he plopped down on the ground.

"Now I tell you a story."

Kakashi's limbs twitched warily at his words. They boy made to jump back up and leave, but gloved hands wrapped around his wrists to halt him. "Don't be like that," his uncle chided in a decidedly sulky tone. "It's a  _good_  story."

Kakashi stiffened.

"Not porn," Kabushi corrected quickly, picking up his younger self's dread.

The little chunin's shoulders untensed ever-so-slightly. Turning to face the man, he seemed to try and confirm the authenticity of his promise before finally accepting at last. "Alright, fine," he groused lowly, and slipped back into a sitting position. "Tell it, then."

Kabushi sent him a soft smile. His lone eye drifted upwards, gazing into the clouds overhead, unfocused and remembering. A grimace expressed them man's pain upon recalling those memories, but he quickly shook it off, returning his sights on his nephew once more. "It's a story about a boy," Kabushi began, words slow and unassuming, "and how he strove to be a respected ninja by doing whatever was expected of him."

"Good for him." Kakashi retorted, thinking nothing of it.

Kabushi's eyes closed and he shook his head. " _Not_  good," the older Hatake disagreed, tone deceptively light. "He was a  _coward_ _,_ hiding behind the word of rules." His pale fingers picked at the frays of his gloves, but otherwise there was no sign the story held any impact to the man telling it. "The truth was he was simply afraid to think for himself and did what he was told without question."

Certain words were a trigger to Kakashi, Kabushi knew this. The word 'coward' was certainly one because that was what Sakumo had been labled as, from the villagers, from fellow shinobi, from Kakashi himself. Kakashi hissed at his uncle slandering the shinobi taught rules. "Shinobi have no authority to question our orders from superiors. We listen and obey. Cowards are the ones who try to break orders for their own purpose."

"Oh?" Kabushi murmured, disappointment in his voice. His eye fixed a steady stare onto his younger self's, as if trying pulling understanding into the teen from his gaze alone. "But at the end of the day, we are human, not some emotionless robotic tool. We think and have opinions because that's what humans do."

Kabushi said persuasively, "He  _was_  a coward because he was afraid how people would react to him if he wasn't obedient; that perfect little shinobi. He was afraid he would see disappointment from them, rejection, scorn – and so he killed off his personality and hid himself behind flawed rules so it wouldn't happen to him."  _Like it had happened to their father,_  Kabushi did not say out loud.

Kakashi wanted to argue, his mouth opened to refute those statements, but he couldn't do it. There was something in his soul that churned at Kabushi's words, that couldn't deny a single point. Another part of him was slowly building in anger, because this sounded too little like a random story than Kabushi admonishing Kakashi about his current life choices. Only a fool couldn't see the resemblance of Kakashi's life to the tale Kabushi was weaving.

Kabushi watched him from the corner of his eye, continuing, "and then they boy met someone – someone so unlike him, he couldn't help but hate him for it. It was a long time later that the boy finally realised it was jealousy he felt. In front of the judgemental eyes of others, that other boy was constantly criticized. Yet it never bothered the other boy, and he was endlessly cheerful despite that. He was jealous of that mental strength."

Kabushi rubbed the Leaf symbol of his slanted hitai-ate, his hand slowly gliding towards his left eye.

"The boy could delude himself all he wanted that they had a mutual hatred of each other, so that he could act out his petty anger. But that was just a lie the boy held onto by himself because when it truly counted, despite how insolent, arrogant, and egotistical I – the boy," Kabushi said hastily, correcting himself, but Kakashi caught the change in pronoun. The teen's rising anger began to numb. Despite himself, he finally allowed his uncle's words to seep into this conscious, because this wasn't a critic or a random story, but his uncle's own childhood. Kakashi was understandably interested.

"Despite how insolent the boy was," Kabushi continued over Kakashi's thoughts, "that other kid had no hesitation pushing him away from death and accepting it in his place." A lone grey-blue eye stared out into the trees, seeing what no one else could. "It's really a shame, " he all but whispered, "when the moment he finally accepted someone for who they were; finally forgave himself; finally saw the whole world past that bricked wall he built himself, the one he owed it all to was snatched away from this world, never realising how much the boy owed him."

Kakashi fidgeted, gaze never meeting his Uncle's eyes. "Is this about your eye again?" he asked indifferently. Kabushi gave a wiry smile, making out the uncomfortable twinge in his younger self's voice. His story definitely struck something in the teen.

"Maybe."

In a stiff motion, Kakashi stood up. His actions were nonchalant as he brushed off grass from his pants. His head tilted to the side arrogantly, but eyes carefully locked onto a tree behind his uncle, refusing eye contact. "What does this have to do with anything?" he asked scalding, tone scarcely matching his action.

Kabushi knew better than to call him on it. "Nothing and everything," he replied instead. Kabushi pulled himself up to his feet as well, back stretching as he stood. He offered the chunnin a tentative smile. "Strength is not something you can obtain alone. Get along well with your friends before you regret the decision in the future."

"I don't have friends."

The older Hatake arched an eyebrow. "Minato, Rin, Obito?" he listed. And there would be so many more if he only gave them a chance.

"Minato-sensei is the team leader, Rin is a tolerable teammate, and Obito is a weak idiot," the boy stated without any infliction in this tone. "They are not my friends. Do not talk as though you know me," Kakashi spat out, turning swiftly on his heel and leaving the man without another word. His stoic, uncaring demeanour was back once more, and Kabushi was afraid he might've pushed too hard.

The man, alone, sighed softly to himself. At least he still had time.

* * *

 

Little Kakashi hated it when adults preached at him, thinking they knew best. In reality it was false; if adults truly knew what was best, his father wouldn't've been disgraced because his father would've been  _right._

It was a lesson Kakashi learnt early on in life, and perhaps the most critical lesson he would ever attain - Everything about the world were lies except for rules.

Rules didn't change – they were etched permanently into scrolls and manual, easily understood, easily reference. There were no way around these cold, hard rules. They were nothing like the whimsical personality that made up the people of the village. People were pathetic and unreliable, changing opinions whenever it suited them best.

One minute everyone was happy Sakumo saved them, the next, they scorned him for sacrificing the mission and disgracing the village.

What gave adults the right to preach when adults themselves were indecisive sheep, following the opinion of the majority? He would  _never_ be like them.  _Never. H_ e would rather give up those useless emotions and become the model ninja. What was the reason for striving along this career path if he refused to comply with the requirements that lead him towards the ideal?

That didn't make him a coward!

Kakashi sat up on the rooftop of a stray apartment. He'd ended up wandering aimlessly after storming away from his uncle until he ended up here. Hours passed, clouds upon clouds passing overhead. His eyes were glazed and unseeing as he stared into the sky, mind kept blank. He was unwilling to think, unwilling to see how much sense his uncle honestly made.

Why did the man have to come now of all times?

Kakashi had been doing fine all on his own. He set his mind to his goal and was striving towards it. Now Kabushi was making him question all his decision, and Kakashi wasn't liking what he saw.

In the corner of Kakashi's mind, he faintly registered the sun slowly sinking into the west horizon. The teen let out a low sighed. Then, without another word, Kakashi stood up suddenly. He turned around stiffly, as though hating his next movements, yet slowly but surely, he headed back in the direction of the forest where his uncle had been.

Half of him had no idea why he was going back, the other half denied furiously that it was because his uncle seemed to be able to help him. Maybe he just wanted some company after spending half the day all by himself. Or maybe - just maybe - he wanted to listen to his wisdom and learn to trust his uncle and his intrusive opinions.

He hadn't made it back to the clearing when shouting caught the chunin's attention.

"Keep it up; put more chakra into it!" Kabushi's voice sounded, encouraging and pleased.

Curious, Kakashi took to the trees to propel himself closer. He didn't know know why what he saw made his chest sting so hard. Obito stood before Kabushi as the man eagerly coached the teen on his Katon. There was a large grin on Obito's face. There was an even larger grin on Kabushi's.

His hand clenched into a fist without him knowing and his lips let out an unexpected hiss of anger.

That sound was more than enough to catch Kabushi's attention, drawing the man's gaze over at him. Kakashi muttered quietly to himself, shocked he was caught staring so quickly, as he fled the scene without a glance back.

If Kabushi hadn't seen his masked lips moved, he would've assumed he was just imagining things, as a murmur sailed with the wind.

"So you'd rather help Obito than me?" Because Kakashi hadn't forgotten how Kabushi had brushed him off when  _he_ asked to learn from him, yet here Obito was happily taking his spot, when he wasn't even family like him.

Though by the time the sentence registered in Kabushi's mind, Kakashi was gone in a swirl of leaves, leaving no traces behind.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I always believed that Kakashi acted the way he did because he was afraid people would treat him like they did with his father if they ever saw that he wasn't the perfect little prodigal shinobi everyone hailed him as.


	6. Denied

Little Kakashi had already turned into bed by the time Kabushi returned back at their apartment. In the morning, he was gone before Kabushi woke up, using his window as an escape route so he wouldn't rouse his Uncle out of slumber.

Kabushi let out an irritated groan, scrubbing his hands on his face when he realised he was all alone. He screwed up, and now Kakashi was no doubt ignoring him. The man ran an irritated hand through his unruly silver hair wondering how he could fix the situation now. Just when he was getting so close too.

Fists pounded at the door at that moment. "Sensei, sensei! Wake up already!" Naruto's bright voice cried from the other side.

Kabushi pulled up his mask, rolled off his couch, and dragged his feet the short distance over. "I'm up. I'm up," he groaned impolitely as he yanked open the door. He glowered down at his student, too cheerful and loud so early in the morning.

"Minato-sensei's taking us out for brunch since we have no mission today! He told me to take you along," was Naruto's jovial cry back. That boy was immune to Kabushi's rude behaviours. Shame.

Then Naruto’s words registered to his mind. "Oh?" he murmured softly to himself, contemplating the proposal. Maybe spending some time with Minato would give him some ideas to deal with his stubborn younger self. Minato had always knew how to instinctively make others feel safe and welcomed. "Alright, let's go," the Hatake agreed.

Something nudged him in his mind, trying to remind himof  something, but for the life of him, Kabushi had no idea what it was. He was only going to leave his younger self alone for a day so he could calm down. What was he forgetting?

Shaking his head, Kabushi cast the thought out of his mind. If it really was important, he would remember it sooner or later. It’d been too long since he had a rest day to spend with Minato-sensei, and such matters shouldn’t spoil their time together.

**WWtCH**

"Five bowls of pork ramen!" Naruto cried out as soon as he plopped down on the bar seat of Ichiraku.

Kabushi was more polite, nodding at the only other blond at the ramen stand with a soft, "Good morning, Minato-san."

Minato smiled back at him, waving from his place, chopsticks in his hand. "Good morning, Kabushi. How's your day been?" Warmth spread in the masked man at his former teacher's words. He'd missed this man, his father figure after Sakumo's death, so much. They hardly ever met up outside of training, and times like these, Kabushi cherished, eager to take in warmth of family his child-self had stubbornly missed out on.

"Can't say much happened," Kabushi laughed, "I was lying on the couch the whole morning."  _Sulking_. But Minato didn't need to know that.

The blond chuckled with him, before turning to watch Narui practically inhaling the whole stand, shaking his head in amusement. "Well, do order something to eat, Kabushi," the jounin prompted, "Lunch is on me, as I've told Narui, who…" he glanced at the younger blond once more, already staring on his fourth bowl of ramen, "seems quite eager to eat all my money away," he teased.

Naruto had the decency to blush. "Sorry."

Minato laughed in response. "No worries. As long as I don't treat you every day, my wallet will survive."

Kabushi snorted a laugh with his sensei, ordering a bowl of miso ramen as the blonds bickered playfully between them. Naruto seemed really happy lately, spending time as close as he could without clinging onto his father. Indeed, there was nothing like family.

Not for the first time, Kabushi wondered how his life would've been like if his own father was still alive. He wouldn't be as much of a lost cause as his younger self was now, that was for sure. Watching Naruto laugh and joke with his dad made him crave for his own. Chance and luck really favored Naruto. For himself, not so much. Really, if they had just come back seven years earlier, he could've tried his luck and attempted to change the man’s fate.

But then again, if he was going to start thinking selfish thoughts like that, he might as well had wished to have gone back to the beginning of time, eager to save  _everybody._

"-tely? Kabushi?" A voice jarred the daydreaming time-traveller. "Kabushi?" Minato's concern voice called out again.

A lone grey-blue eye blinked, breaking out of his daze. Kabushi focused on the blond before him. "Oh, sorry, did you say something?" he asked in a nonchalant drawl. Kabushi could feel Minato staring intently into his face, and the masked man struggled not to pull on his blank facade in return. If there was anyone who knew what Kakashi's blank faces meant, it was Minato.

"I asked how you were getting along with Kakashi lately?" the blond repeated concernedly.

Kabushi shrugged after a long moment of silence. "Good. Could be better," he admitted lamely, because he wasn’t about to admit he might have messed up.

Minato accepted his answer with a small sincere smile. "That's great to hear," he said, before his lips twisted into a more playful grin. "Though, you really should stop teasing Kakashi so much. I don't think I've seen him this flustered before. You really do know how to push his buttons, don't you?"

"I guess it's a Hatake talent," the masked man bantered, matching his tone. Kabushi could hear Naruto snorting into his food.

"Ah? That explains a lot," the older blond laughed out loud. "Oh, that boy hasn't been this expressive since …" The man's mood suddenly dropped, words faltering off into nothing.

Kabushi knew what he was going to say.  _'… since Sakumo had be disgraced and committed seppuku in shame.'_  

Nights after nights, his father's decision had haunted him, before the boy finally had enough and decided to push everything away. That was the start of it all.

Kabushi grinned suddenly, a smile forcefully plastered on his face. It did nothing to erase the gloomy memories, but it was certainly a start to shift the atmosphere into something a bit more lively. "Enough about me; how's your life with this hyperactive knucklehead?" he asked. “You’ve been housing him since we’ve arrived, haven’t you?”

“Yes,” Minato confirmed.

Beside him, "Sensei!" Narui whined, mouth full of ramen. "I thought you stopped calling me that."

Kabushi gave a low chuckle at the boy's words. "Aaa, you'll always be my number one unpredictable, knuckleheaded ninja," the man cooed.

Minato laughed between the sulking Narui and teasing Kabushi, sounding so light and sunny. "You have quite the moniker, Narui," the man commented, cerulean eyes lighting up in humour.

"I'm not a knucklehead anymore," the younger blond protested stubbornly.

"Of course not," Kabushi comforted, though even Naruto could tell he didn't mean it at all.

"Hey! Minato-sensei, tell him he's wrong," the boy pouted, pleading the other blond for support.

The man grinned, tapping his chopsticks against his lips in a mischievous manner. Kabushi couldn't help but notice the blinding resemblance between father and son at Minato's impish expression. He expertly shoved away his own selfish wants and needs as he noticed Naruto's utter glee from interacting with his father. If they _had_ arrived seven years earlier, perhaps Kabushi could have save his own father, but Naruto wouldn’t have been able to mingle with Minato the way he did now. Seven years ago, Minato was too young and immature, not even close to the Hokage and Father figure that Naruto was told stories of. Perhaps, regardless, Naruto wouldn’t have been disappointed, but Kabushi was just glad the kid was able to have the full experience because he deserved it.

Narui brooded into his ramen, seeing the mischievousness on his father's face. "Hey, you don't get to tease me too," he grumbled, before quickly, easily turning the tables, "or else I get to tell Kabushi-sensei that you calling us out for ramen is so that you might lure a certain redhead to join us if she passes by."

Minato seemed to choke at Narui's words, and Kabushi's single eye gleamed at the information.

"Oh, do tell," Kabushi urged his student, grey-blue eyes twinkling conspiringly.

"There was no ulterior motive," the blond jounin denied, trying futilely to wave the suspicions away.

Narui gave a toothy grin, whisker marks on his face stretching as his lips split widely upwards. "Ne, so I saw these pictures of a redhead he had hidden, like,  _everywhere_  in his house," the boy began, speaking to Kabushi, even as Minato protested weakly beside him. "I asked him about her, but all Minato-sensei would tell me was how much she likes ramen and how he hasn't seen her in while. And then the next thing I know, he's suggesting that we should go try Ichiraku's ramen today with this perverted look in his eyes."

"There was no perverted look,” Minato objected, face heating up, "I was genuinely curious if you two wanted ramen."

Naruto rolled his eyes with a laugh. " _Sure_ ," he drawled, "I've had my fair share of perverted teachers, Kabushi-sensei included. I can tell."

"So tell me about your beloved redheaded princess," Kabushi grinned, tag-teaming with Naruto to embarrass his former teacher. "And just exactly how many photos do you have of her hidden throughout your house?"

"There's only a few," the blond admitted, because it was fruitless to deny anything by this point.

Narui giggled on the stool, his dangling feet kicking in excitment. "No there's not," he challenged.

"You're taking stalker photos of your crush?"

"No!" Minato baulked, face burning red by now. He sent a glare at the silver-haired man. "They're legit photographs," he tried to explain.

"Aah," Kabushi said knowingly, "Photograph _s_  you say? As in more than one picture of your lady love?"

The jounin moaned into his hand, because the two of them looked like they were having too much fun to let him off any time soon. "It's just Kushina," Minato grumbled pitifully, sending a playful glare at his houseguest for starting the whole thing.

"What's  _just_  me?" a feminine voice suddenly asked from behind, curious.

Minato stiffened slightly at it, but seemed to recover quickly enough. "How are you today, Kushina?" the man asked, like nothing was out of the ordinary. Or like how they _weren't_ just discussing he had a stash of her photos framed around his house. “What are you doing here?” he continued, sounding a tad strained.

Kushina’s only reaction to his tone was to take a quick glance over at him, then, "Oh, I'm fine," the female answered, and then, “What? Am I not allowed to eat ramen now?” She pointed at the ramen bar they were sat in.

Minato gave an awkward laugh.

Kushina ignored him. Her long, red hair swung behind her back as she turned towards the two guests beside the man. "Are these two the new ninjas who showed up a few months ago?" the redhead asked. "Introduce us already!" she urged impatiently to Minato. "I'm Uzumaki Kushina!" Kushina called over before Minato could even speak.

Kabushi stifled at laugh at Kushina, remember her personality vividly. Kushina was someone you could never forget. People could try and order the woman around, but she did whatever she wanted, and if there was a complain, she would bulldoze right through it.

The silver-haired man raised a hand in greeting. " Hatake Kabushi," he said pleasently. "Pleased to meet you."

Naruto was stuck in a daze, eyes focused solely on the redhead before him and mind out of orbit. His sky-blue eyes had a shiny sheen to them, emotions trapped within. They screamed out his desire for his mother to recognise him, hold him, love him, and comfort him – everything he wanted to say as a child but was never allowed or been able to.

Kabushi stuck his foot behind Minato's stool, and almost regrettably, jolted his student’s wordless admiring. There was only so long before the look on Naruto's face raised suspicion. "Stop ogling at the poor woman," Kabushi demanded.

The boy snapped out of his stupor with a soft, " _Oh_." Shaking his head, the blond started again, this time in the boisterous tone Kabushi was used to. "I'm Uzu Narui! Nice to meet you!" he cried back at the redhead. "You're louder than I expected you to be!" he commented, fond (oh so fondly), innocent, and of course, blunt like the ninja Narui was.

Kabushi choked back a laugh at the blond's words. Kushina and Naruto were two peas in a pod. Definitely mother and son with the same loudness, bluntness, and hyperactive impatience.

"What did you say, you little brat?" the woman yelled, her dark blue eyes flashing with rage.

Minato laughed nervously, hands held up in a placating manner. "Now, now, let's not fight," he soothed the two. The blond turned to Kabushi for help only to see the masked man sitting back and enjoying the confrontation in amusement. Minato sighed. "Play nice, children."

"Children? You calling me a child, Minato?" Kushina sulked, turning her attention away from other blond.

"Ahh, of course not," he calmed, holding his hand defensively. "I would never suggest that. You're a perfectly fine example of a woman."

"Good," the redhead huffed, plopping down on a free stool. "Now be a gentleman and buy this perfectly fine and  _beautiful_  example of a woman a bowl of ramen."

Minato chuckled softly at the redhead's words, completely expecting it. "My treat," he said charmingly. Narui snorted indiscreetly into his hands at the Namikaze's tone, earning himself a glare.

“Your girlfriend’s got you whipped,” Narui teased, quiet, of course, because he didn’t want to earn Kushina’s wrath.

“She’s not-“ Minato started, before he cut himself off. He turned away in what was likely a huff, and then was distracted by the woman’s further demands.

"Excellent," Kushina grinned at him. "Salt ramen, Teuchi-san!" the woman cried over the counter.

"Coming right up."

Kushina rubbed her hands eagerly, turning back to the two time-travellers in enthusiastic curiosity. "So, how's the idiot been treating you two?" she asked good-naturedly. She tactfully ignored the playful scowl the man sent back at her, blinding him with another cheery grin.

"He's been getting along wonderfully with my idiot. You know what they say," Kabushi offered, eyes lit in a rather mischievous expression.

"Idiots attract each other?" Kushina finished happily.

"Hey!"

The silver-haired man and redhead expertly ignored the indignant twin cries. "That works just as well, Uzumaki-san," Kabushi concurred.

The woman cracked up before giving the Hatake a 'tsk'. "Called me Kushina," the redhead corrected cheerfully, "No 'Uzumki-san'. That's too formal."

"Of course, Kushina-san," Kabushi agreed obediently towards the woman who'd be everything from his older sister to mother-figure in the past.

Kushina grinned happily turning sharply towards Minato. "See how nice some guys are?"

"What?" Minato asked innocently, "Aren't I buying you lunch already?"

"You're supposed to buy her flowers," Naruto whispered knowingly from the side. "And expensive jewelry." The boy paused. "At least that's what Ino tells me."

Kushina laughed, slurping into her noodles with vigor.

"Take your time, Kushina!" Minato scolded like he would with a child, "you don't want to start feeling nauseated again."

"Hey, I'm chewing properly! I always do!" the woman countered, before waving off the man with a: "That was just last weeks. I'm feeling fine now, honestly!" to get him to stop worrying like the worrywart he was. "Stop embarrassing me!"

"Yeah, don't be mean!" Narui agreed with a laugh.

Kushina turned back to the younger blond, a laugh equally as strong on her lips. "Yeah!" she cried with a nod, before finishing up her noodles. "I like you guys already!" she said happily, patting Narui on the back. "We should get together some day when we're all free." Kushina pushed aside her now-empty bowl aside as she hopped out of her seat.

Kabushi could see the disappointment clearly in Naruto's blue eyes as the redhead looked ready to leave. "Oh, you're going already?" the blond asked. There was a soft, pleading whine hidden in this tone.

"Sorry," the redhead said remorsefully, "But we have to get to the Hokage Tower."

Minato blinked at that. "Eh? We? Me too?" He jumped up from his stool at Kushina's nod. "Why didn't you tell me sooner?"

The woman pouted, "But how can I resist ramen? It's your fault for tempting me."

"We could've come back another time!"

"But I was already here!" Kushina whined, "All this walking around to find you was making me tired, and I suddenly craved ramen."

“Don’t you always?” Minato retorted, before shaking his head. "Alright, alright, my fault. Let’s head to Tower now," he urged exasperatedly, already laying down bills on the counter. He turned towards the two time-travellers. "Sorry to cut our lunch short," he said.

Kabushi nodded, his own disappointment matching the sulking look on Naruto's face, but he didn't show it, as he understood the busy life of a shinobi. "Thanks for lunch," Kabushi replied, holding up a hand in a saluting goodbye.

"See the two of you _on time_  tomorrow for your mission," Minato reminded them. "We're meeting at the Hokage Tower, seven sharp." He fixed a stare at the lounging silver-haired man in front of him. Kabushi returned an innocent smile that was tainted with amusement.

"Are you telling me I  _shouldn't_ stop to help old ladies across the road?"

The blond rolled his eyes. " _If_  that's what you actually do," he grumbled mildly before allowing a grin to form back on his face. "Anyways, see you tomorrow," he called out, bidding them goodbye.

And with that, he fled after his lovely redhead, shooting her a " _I told you not to eat so fast,"_  as she complained something about her stomach hurting or feeling sick. Kabushi chuckled as they watched Minato's quickly retreating back.

“She is _so_ his girlfriend,” Naruto laughed to himself.

Kabushi snorted. “I would expect so considering they eventually had you.”

Naruto froze and then blinked thoughtfully to himself. “Oh,” he muttered, “yeah, I guess so.” Then he snickered, “But he’s too shy to admit it,” because Minato _still_ refused to openly admit it despite how many times Naruto pressed both at his house and the ramen bar. “It’s going to be hilarious making fun of him,” he conspired to himself.

Kabushi laughed at his student, ruffling up Narui's blond hair, and shaking his head exasperatedly. "Have fun with that," he said and meant it. Then with a wave, the masked man gave Narui a final nod and headed back to Kakashi's apartment in great spirits.

Today was a good day.

* * *

 

 

The moment Kabushi set foot in his old apartment, the nagging in his mind persisted once more.

The silver-haired man scrubbed his hand across his face with a slight groan. "Maybe I'm just worried about Kakashi?" he mused quietly to himself. It had practically been a whole day since Kabushi last saw his younger self, after all.

Kabushi dropped himself down on the couch he claimed as his own. He cast his mind back to his own days as a teen. If he had been the old Kakashi, and an unknown uncle spontaneously appeared in his life, constantly attempting to get a rise out of him, how would he feel?

Annoyed, definitely, but then again, that was the default state of young Kakashi.

He would be cautious, trying to find deeper meaning into everything this unknown uncle said and did. He would be flustered, because no one acted that way around him that hadn’t been discouraged from by his snark. He would be pretentious, unwilling to let this stranger see anything except the image he wanted to project to the world.  Perhaps even absentminded from time to time, because Kabushi’s similarity to Sakumo drew nightmares that persisted constantly.

However, avoidance was unexpected.

Kakashi would sooner lash out at someone, bullheadedly driving his own views to those who opposed. His attitude towards Obito was one example of this.

Avoidance meant…

Kabushi blinked in wonder, sitting up from the slouch he had slipped into.

Avoidance meant Kabushi had gotten through Kakashi’s thick, stubborn skull. Kabushi had somehow managed to hit the right topics and gotten Kakashi to look introspectively at himself. It was surprising because Kabushi knew adults nagging tended to make his younger self close off his ears and make agreeing noises until they went away. That’s why though he tried, he hadn’t put _too_ much hope into it. Even if Kakashi only heard a single sentence of his tale and kept it to heart, Kabushi was already pleased – but who would expect his words had hit deeper than Kabushi expected.

Avoidance also meant Kakashi cared about Kabushi, about that stranger of an uncle that suddenly appeared into his life. Admittedly Kakashi’s departure from the forest once he saw Obito with him wasn’t most ideal. But if the avoidance was from jealousy, that meant there was something to feel jealous about, and Kabushi hadn’t realised he was already starting to hold a place in his younger self’s heart.

While Kabushi was inwardly feeling satisfied with himself, the handle of the apartment door suddenly jiggled, and the door slowly creaked open. Kabushi's eyes darted over to the sound.

Speak of the devil, Kabushi thought to himself, and then his mind gave way to bewilderment as Kakashi’s appearance registered to his mind.

Little Kakashi was covered in bruises, from black to purple. White bandages peeked from the edge of his sleeves, as the teen walked stiffly towards the couch Kabushi vacated for him.

"What happened-" Kabushi began, and then the persistent nudging in his mind finally gave its reason.  _The Jounin Exam,_  Kakashi realised, quickly connecting the dots _._  "I missed your Jounin Exam," Kabushi exclaimed aloud, before pausing because, wait, that couldn't be right. If today really was Kakashi's Jounin Exam, then they wouldn't be meeting at the Hokage Tower tomorrow morning – rather it would be at their usual training grounds. This wasn't what happened the first time around.

Kakashi's grey-blue eyes narrowed, but there was no feeling behind it. "Are you spying on me?" he stated. How else did the man know he just took the Jounin Exam? Or was even scheduled to take it?

"I wish I was, and then I wouldn't have missed it," Kabushi said half teasing the boy, even while his mind was in turmoil. Did he unknowingly change the future without even trying? He would like to brush it off as a minor change, except for Kabushi, nothing about tomorrow was any bit minor. Tomorrow was the start of the mission that took a young teen from the world too soon to be fair.

…except, _now_ what?

Had Obito’s death been effortlessly postponed?

Clueless, in front of him, Kakashi rolled his eyes. "I'm not a kid. I don't need an audience. I already threatened sensei not to come. Besides, only Jounin are allowed to watch. You clearly are not a Jounin of Konoha."

Kabushi brushed him off with a wave of his hand. "Whether you're thirteen or fifty, I'll always want to watch my precious nephew compete. Nothing would've gotten in my way to cheer you on," he said, words truthful, yet mind distant.

Something fluttered in Kakashi's chest, but a sudden pain shot it down not a moment later. "Well you clearly forgot, so it’s nothing more than meaningless words now. You seem more interested in helping train Obito than me anyways," he commented coolly, shifting to a more comfortable position on the couch.

Kabushi grimaced at the teen’s pointed words, but merely stood to head to the kitchen. He wouldn’t apologise for it because Obito needed his help. Kakashi had to realise his own teammates improving was advantageous to him as well.

Also… Obito. Since Kabushi somehow managed to divert Team Seven away from the dreaded Kannabi Bridge mission, Obito would no longer be the catalyst to Kakashi’s change in world view. This was solely Kabushi’s duty now.

Kabushi exited the kitchen, hand holding plates of reheated dinner. He passed one off the Kakashi before settling down across from him, a plate in his own lap. "Eat," the man ordered, and pulled down his mask and dug a chopstick into his own plate.

Kakashi openly studied to older Hatake. The two of them looked remarkably alike, Kakashi noted, seeing his uncle's slim jawline. People had always mentioned the similarities between himself and Sakumo, but clearly Kabushi and himself looked a lot more alike. His eyes wandered to the man's slanted hitai-ate, a hint of a scar was seen, usually hidden by the edge of his mask. The scar looked ragged and deep, even from the little that was present.

Kabushi’s story about his past (though he tried to pass it off as a random boy) couldn’t help but resurface in Kakashi’s mind. Lowering his face, Kakashi tugged his own mask off as well and picked up his chopsticks.

They were halfway through the meal, when Kabushi had enough of the repetitive noise of chewing. His voice cut through without warning,  "Let's talk.”

Kakashi looked up sharply. Kabushi's solemn expression looked evenly back at him, and Kakashi wondered if it was a continuation to Kabushi’s tale. The boy swallowed. "About what?" Kakashi probed.

"You."

"Me," the boy repeated, dry. "There is nothing we need to discuss about me," Kakashi continued, quickly and sharply. The topic about himself was not one he wanted to touch. The line would have been said confidently had it been days before, but after Kabushi’s own reveal, Kakashi hadn’t been able to help to dwell on his own life. It had been a bad idea, to say the least.

The time-traveller sighed softly, placing his plate of food to the side and staring at Kakashi straight on. "That is called running away," Kabushi said. "There is always something to discuss, no matter who it is."

Kakashi bit his lip anxiously before realising how visible that action was without his mask on. He turned away.

Kabushi shook his head sadly. "You don't have to look at me. Just listen," he murmured, hoping Kakashi would do that, at the very least.

For a while, the two Hatakes sat still at their respective spots, before at last, the silver-haired boy dipped his head to a short nod. "Talk all you want. It doesn't mean I'll accept what you say," the boy said stiffly.

Inwardly Kabushi knew that wouldn’t be the case. Outwardly Kabushi only gave another soft smile, even though Kakashi wasn't looking his way. “Alright," Kabushi said agreeably, taking in a deep breath and casting his own mind inwards to the experiences and emotions he'd once tried so hard to lock away.

He didn’t know how to start, but bumbling his way through it was better than dawdling in hesitation. At the very least it would show his sincerity. "I know you're a great ninja, Kakashi; a prodigy, everyone praises. You have skills beyond those your age, but you have to remember, you are _not_ their age. You're only thirteen, and despite what you want to believe, you are still a child. And you need to act like it. Or rather, you are  _allowed_  to act like it and no one will blame you." Kabushi paused, unsure how to continue. He licked his lips, stalling for time.

"Why are you shoving away your emotions when you feel you can't deal with them?" Kabushi finally began again, this time straight to the root of the issue. "Why do you think there are people around you for? They care about you. They'll be glad to share your pain with you."  _The haunting, dreary nights after Sakumo's death…_ "You are allowed to feel sorrow. To cry you heart out when you need to. To ask for hugs. To throw a tantrum. To let it all out," Kabushi cried out, because god knows how much he needed it, and how much it would've helped if he had.

 _And yet…_  "But of all those choices, you decided to keep it all locked in and hidden the key away where no one would ever find it. But that box won't last forever. One day, the lid  _will_ crack open, and when it explodes out on you, it will  _break you_ , all that evil in that box; all those problems you refused to address and just shoved away."  _And you'll end up doing nothing but suicidal ANBU missions after missions until your body can no longer take it. And yet the pain will never go away._

"It'll only get worse and worse," Kabushi said softly, remembering, "The pain will never go away."  _Not until you finally realise you need to open up to people in order to heal. People like Obtio, Rin, Minato, the Hokage, Gai, Naruto, Sakura …_ "There are so many people who are willing help you, if you'd only open your eyes and look."

The sharp clang of Kakashi's plates as the young teen violently pushed it away drew Kabushi's attention. "Everyone around are just comrades of war. I don't need them, and I don't tolerate them anymore than I am required to," the silver-haired boy objected.

Kabushi tilted his head, staring into his own memories. "You like Obito."Kabushi finally said.  _You… We envied him. He became an irreplaceable friend without me knowing it._ "But your pride won't let you be friends with the dead last."  _Or rather, have friends at_ _all_. _"_ But he won't be last forever. Everyone is growing up, and some are just late-bloomers."

Kakashi snorted. "Obito hasn't grown up in the past three years. And if anything, his skills have only gotten worse."

Kabushi gave the boy a soft smile. "Maybe all he needs is a nudge, a guiding hand, and someone who believes in him? A friend."

"Basically, you're saying that friends make everything better," Kakashi huffed, eyes staring darkly on the plate on his lap. His small hands picked absentmindedly at his wooden chopsticks.

"Among other things," the time-traveller replied, wondering how much really got through to his younger self this time. The older man rubbed his temples before shaking his head softly and picking up the empty plates in front of them both. "I'll clean up," Kabushi offered, pushing up from the couch. "Why don't you sleep on it?" the man suggested. "Besides, you've had a busy day."

Beside him, Kakashi pressed his lips into a thin line, eyes with a faraway look, before they flicker and snapped to attention again. "Right," the boy said, tone seemingly back to normal.

Kabushi gestured towards the teen’s room. "Go sleep," he urged, feeling oddly parental, "We have to report to the Hokage Tower first thing tomorrow morning for our mission."

He'd meddled enough for one day.

Plus, Kabushi needed time to himself to think. He’d thought for a second that the Kannabi Bridge mission was avoid, except the longer the idea settled in the back of his mind, the more and more unlikely it suddenly seemed. Perhaps the _meeting spot_ changed, but the mission couldn’t have. As a solider, Kabushi knew how vital that mission had been to their attack against the Iwagakure forces. Something so major was unlikely to be altered. And it was supposed to be a relatively simple mission because of the shinobi teams scatted across the country to divert Iwa’s focus – something even a recently promoted Jounin could command.

Kakashi fit the bill perfectly, both in the past, and present.

So the mission would commence, and the Bridge would fall, but hopefully this time no stray cave would take Obito along with it. And if such coincidences still occurred, did fate honestly think Kabushi would let the past re-enact itself in front of his very eyes and not intervene?

Kakashi's sudden frown caught Kabushi off guard as the boy halted his step back to his room. His words threw Kabushi for a loop. "We're meeting at the Training Area, not the Hokage Tower." The pores of every cell in Kabushi’s body froze. "I guess the original Team Minato and the two of you have different missions tomorrow," Kakashi commented, voicing what had already occurred through Kabushi's suddenly frantic mind.

Dread filled Kabushi.  Even as he feared the question itself, Kabushi forced his mouth to move and ask it, voice slow and hesitant. "Do you know where your mission is going to be?"

The boy tilted his head to the side thinking. "Somewhere in Kusagakure," Kakashi guessed.

"Oh, I see. Good night then," Kabushi dismissed. If his voice seemed a little stiff, Kakashi never noticed, as the young boy slipped off for his bed. Inwardly, the time-traveller was panicking because he knew little Kakashi's mission was the exact mission he had dread for years and years after. And if that was the case, then where would his own be held?

Just when he thought he was given a second chance, it was quickly snatched away from him. A bitter laugh surfaced, because didn’t it seem like even fate was against his recuse of his late best friend?

Except, Kabushi couldn’t allow it. He couldn’t just give up like that.

Kabushi slipped out of Kakashi's apartment without a second thought, heading towards their Hokage, frustration and pain fuelling the way.

He stepped into the old man's office the moment he was allowed in, his eyes set and determined.

"Can I help you, Kabushi?" The Sandaime asked, pipe bobbing in his mouth. His office was still brightly lit, despite the time of night. The work of a Hokage was never done.

"The mission tomorrow…" the Hatake began without much preamble, almost feeling sorry of disturbing the Hokage's work, but not enough for Obito's life, "Is it not the same as the one Team Minato will be given?"

A deep gaze caught his eye, giving nothing away. "Does it matter?" the old man asked ambiguously, still Kabushi understood it as a 'no' all the same.

Kabushi never took himself one for impulsive actions. Perhaps Naruto would argue against it, citing his decision to investigate that rock that brought them here in the past in the first place. But the truth of that was that Kabushi had weighed the pros and cons between leaving it or risking the possibility Madara was well aware of the rock and its unknown capabilities. And he’d conferred with the Godaime after giving a full report, before dragging Naruto into the mess. Tsunade-sama had had her Anbu ready should things get out of hand with the rock, but he’d just never planned for it to throw them out of the current timeline.

Yet at this moment, with the sight of Obito’s crushed face lingering in his left eye for fifteen years, emotions burst out of his chest.

"I insist on joining Team Minato,” Kabushi pleaded, voice filled with unadulterated need and fear.

“And why must you?” Hiruzen only said, so calm, too calm.

Kabushi opened his mouth, but no words filtered through. _Because Obito will die,_ was not the right answer. “Because the kids are too young. Because Kakashi isn’t ready to lead yet. Because I’m part of Team Minato,” he said, though none ringing true because Obito was his only concern this time. But his expression was begging in full distress, and though his reasons were fake, his passion was not.

The Hokage sat motionless through his barefaced lies. His eyes were hard and calculating, studying the bearing of the shinobi before him. The old man closed his eyes suddenly, as if in deep thought. And then, he said one word Kabushi knew would haunt him forever.

"Denied."

Kabushi's whole body felt numb.


	7. Regret

The Hokage clasped his hands in front of him on his desk. His eyes were sharp and narrowed as he glanced between the three ninjas in front of him. The taller of the two blonds before him bowed deeply. "Understood, Hokage-sama," the man stated. "Team Minato will depart for Kusa immediately."

The Hokage turned his attention to the silver-haired man beside the tall blond. Hiruzen could see the man's stiff posture and twitching fingers as though he was tempted to clench them tightly into a fist. Kabushi was good, Hiruzen noted. Not many could hide their feeling, especially such desperate ones, as he'd seen last night, so well.

His skills only made the Hokage more suspicious of the two. For who knows what else they were hiding from him? And  _why_  was he so desperate to follow Team Minato's mission?

"Kabushi?"

"Understood." Kabushi spoke blandly, voice giving nothing away. "Narui and I will head towards the border of Yu no Kuni to assist the troops stationed there." And try to avoid acknowledging that they were being placed as far away from Kusa as possible.

The old man gave a nod. "It is important," Hiruzen stated unnecessarily, "for you to provide distraction to divert Iwa's attention away from Team Minato's group. You are a key role in our strategy," he said.

Kabushi could plainly hear the message under his statement. The Hokage was making sure he knew how much they were being trusted, being place in such a pivotal part of their plans. In other words, the Hokage wanted him to prove to him they were worthy of his trust and not disappoint him. But for once, Kabushi – no, Kakashi – could've cared less.

Kakashi could go through the motions; he could follow orders without fail for his village. He knew the importance of his role, but his heart ached so badly in his chest. Kakashi had worried about changing too much of the future, when they were first dropped into the past. He was afraid of erasing the timeline he and Narui were plucked out from. He'd convinced himself that they were allowed some minor changes, because surely changing little Kakashi's attitude early or coincidentally saving an overlooked Uchiha, couldn't do too much damage.

But then fate decided it wasn't to be, and Kakashi wondered if it was the world's way of telling him no. Then what was the point of shipping him into the past, other than making him relive the inevitable pain and suffering?

Naruto knew him long enough to realise something was wrong with his sensei, as the blond continued to flicker concerned gazes over at him.

Kabushi wished Minato could see what he was thinking. He wanted some guidance – should he or should he not ignore all signs of the universe that was pushing for a linear timeline? Obito would die if they didn't let him go with them, or somehow warn Team Kakashi, but was he supposed to scream out to the world he was from the future now? There was nothing discreet he could do to change Obito's doom.

Then what, though?

Then he might be disregarded as crazy or insane. He might be thrown into jail for trying to disrupt such an important mission. He  _might_  be believed, but not in time because the mission couldn't be postponed. Besides, how could  _anyone_  believe or even begin to  _imagine_ that fanatical tale of time-travel?

"Dismissed," said the Hokage over Kabushi's internal turmoil.

Minato turned on his heel, breaking Kakashi's heart with every step he took, as he left towards the door without a look back.

"Sensei?" Narui whispered with a nudge of his elbow.

Kabushi nodded, eyes seeing nothing as he headed out the Hokage Tower. "Come along, Narui," he said, voice flat and dead. Maybe he shouldn't make his student worry for him, and just accept the fact Obito would be gone, like he had for the past thirty years. But pretending was too hard at the moment, especially after the small glimmer of hope he'd held in his heart since day one of their time-travelling adventure was snatched away so viciously. He never should have hoped.

Reaching  _Yu_  was not a tiring task. But every step killed the silver-haired man a little more. Every step he took towards the opposite side of what would once more be Obitio's death bed was like a drawn out suicide; small, deliberate stabs to the heart.

Narui ran silently beside Kabushi, his cerulean eyes bore intently on him. Around them, Chuunins and a few Jounin accompanied their journey, undoubtly the other backup troops. Kabushi knew Narui wanted to talk, but the boy had enough sense not to do so with everyone around. Had they been alone, Kabushi knew Narui would've said something –anything – seeing his sensei like this. Narui knew him too well to not spot his silent depression, and it was hard to hide his grief from something he regretted every day of his life for the past thirty years.

Kabushi didn't know if it was a blessing or a curse to be spared the need to talk about it. And if he could, he would ignore those inquiring eyes of Naruto's as long as he possibly could. Because sometimes, shoving things to the corner of his mind was the only way he knew he could live on without breaking down in the process.

And fine, call him hypocritical, despite all he'd told little Kakashi. But this was the way  _he_  had lived for the past twenty years. Sometimes old habits were hard to change. Perhaps he had more hope for his younger self than he did for himself.

"Alright, men," A Jounin called out as soon as the group made it to their location. "We're spreading out from here onwards. Team Kisao, you're heading towards the camp furthest north. Team Jokan to the east. Team Kabushi-"

"Yes," Kabushi acknowledged.

"-you are heading deeper in. My team with me. Report to your individual captain when you make it to you spot. Understood?"

As the shinobi's all leaped towards their assigned directions, Kabushi tried to push a stern, blank face back on as he sped towards their squad captain. The silver-haired man feigned focused determination, eyes fixed solely on their target location.

It was not until Kabushi and Narui met their Captain and were assigned to their positions when Narui cornered his teacher. The boy's eyes flared with stubborn annoyance. The two were alone in a rocky trench. Having been order to watch over that area, the silver-haired man could not turn away and leave when the boy started asking questions.

"Kakashi-sensei," Narui demanded stubbornly, voice conveying his utter persistence, "What's the matter?"

" _Kabushi,"_  the man stressed the name, fixing a look at the boy.

The blond huffed, "Whatever. What's wrong?"

Kabushi shook his head, eyes scanning the area. "Nothing, Narui. Just stay alert."

"No."

The defiant bluntness surprised the man, and he couldn't help snapping his head over to the boy. "No?"

"No," Narui repeated seriously. "Not until you tell me what's wrong."

"We have our orders and we  _will_ listen to them," Kabushi retorted strictly. His voice left no room for arguments, but since when did Naruto care about such things?

"I don't care," Narui humphed, "Something's been bothering you since this morning. Stop acting like your younger self and tell me. We're in this together!"

"There is  _nothing_ ," the man snapped back.

For a second, Narui stayed quiet, perhaps shocked at his teacher snapping at him. And then the boy's blue eyes narrowed. "It's you," he said, confidence building with every word, "and you team." Nothing was a sorer subject for his teacher than his old teammates. Nothing else could make Kabushi react like that strongly. Kabushi's silence gave Naruto all the indication he needed to know he was correct. "Something's going to happen to them, isn't it?" the boy gasped.

Kabushi refused to explain.

"What's going to happen? Sensei!"

Kabushi tried to keep his voice as controlled as he could as he looked firmly over at his student. "Narui, we are nowhere near them. Team Minato can take care of themselves."

"But they  _can't._ Not last time, and probably not this time either, and that's why you're so worried," Narui refuted. His finger dug into his hair, trying to remember all he could about his sensei's past. "Dad's not going to die until I'm born, so it's either Rin or Obito," the boy mused frantically to himself. The blond looked up at Kabushi, face pleading the man to just tell him, even as his mind worked away. "Between Rin and Obito, the one who needs your help…" Cerulean eyes flashed in a moment of insight, catching a glimpse at Kabushi's covered face. "The Sharingan," Narui whispered. "It's Obito."

Something clogged his throat as Kabushi attempted to tell Naruto off. Words just refused to emerge, as the boy's phrase echoed involuntarily through his mind.

_It's Obito._

He  _knew_  it was Obito. He  _knew_. But he didn't need to hear it; he didn't need confirmation of Obito's unavoidable death. "Leave it," Kabushi persisted, voice too devoid of emotion, "we have orders to stay here."

"The sensei I know wouldn't say this."

"Well, I am saying it now."

Narui let out a low growl at Kabushi's words. "Those who don't follow the rules are trash," Naruto quoted heatedly at him, "and those who abandon their friends are worse than trash!"

Kabushi forced his limbs to loosen up, never realising when he'd clenched his fists and until the prickling of his nails against coarse gloves hurt too much to ignore. "I … know," he admitted, voice almost fading in the wind.

"Kakashi-sensei  _never_  abandons his teammates," the boy continued, daring his teacher to say otherwise.

" _I know_ ," Kabushi repeated, in a louder whisper – a sibilant hiss.

"So why are you giving up on Obtio?" Narui demanded. "Does he mean so little to you?"

" _Of course not,"_  the silver-haired man defended promptly, sharply, before Narui could even finish suggesting that ridiculous idea.

Perhaps the blond had expected this answer, for he didn't look the slightest put back by his sensei's tone. "Then why aren't we savinghim? He's your friend, and he's mine too! And you know what going to happen to him. So why aren't we doing it already?" Narui cried out.

"Because." Because they couldn't without breaking orders. Because they were already being watched closely. Because they had the knowledge to reduce casualty in the upcoming Fourth Shinobi World War, and while Kakashi really, really wanted to, could he risk saving one life only to be put on suspicion and be unable to save the many others to come when it actually counted? Was he really that selfish?

"If you're not going, then I am!" Narui declared.

"Naruto," Kabushi said in a stern voice, stopping the boy in his tracks. "This is my problem."

"But-"

"We have orders we can't break, and Obito's on the others side of the Country. I can't do both at once," Kakashi finally explained, because despite his fervent denial, he  _had_  given it some thought.

"Shadow clones, then," Naruto suggested stubbornly.

Kabushi shook his head kindly. "I've considered it," he murmured through his mask. The sleepless night he spent yesterday was devoted to nothing but running possible scenarios through his mind. "I can either make one to leave here, or make one to send to Obito's mission. But I can't account for what will happen if they burst," Kabushi explained, pointing out the holes in the idea. "This was not my mission last time around, and I have no knowledge of what happened in this area during this time. Maybe the Iwa forces tried to invade from this point. Maybe not. But on the off chance that they did, I don't want to let down our village by not stopping them should my clone burst."

Kabushi looked away, continuing, "And should it burst over by Obito's mission, how can I save him then? I will be on the other side of the country watching Obito fall again." And he knew if he watched it a second time, this time his heart really would shatter into a million broken pieces. The man's voice lowered into a soft whisper. He looked wearily into his gloved hands, helpless and ashamed. "It's a matter of what am I willing to sacrifice. The whole village – the end of a war-, or the life of one boy?"

Narui's clenched fist shook by his sides at his sensei's words. " _No one_!" the teen bellowed, eyes flaring in determination. "We're not sacrificing anyone! Keep making clones if they burst! Keep sending them over!"

Kabushi shook his head. "I don't have the ability to continuously make clones," he said regretfully. "I don't have that much chakra to spare."

"But I do!" Narui cried, cerulean eyes widening in anticipation.

"But I'm not you."

"Then  _I'll_  do it!"

"No," Kabushi rejected even before the blond could finish saying his sentence. "I am not involving you in this," he said harshly.

"But I'm the only one who  _can_  do this," Narui countered single-mindedly.

The masked ninja kept quiet, determined not to give in to his student's tempting offer. Of course he wanted to take it because it was the only option that had a possibility of succeeding. But that wouldn't be fair to Naruto, especially when Kabushi could so vividly predict the possible consequences the action would result in, and he really didn't want that to happen to the cheerful blond. If Kabushi was the one who took action, Narui could plead ignorance to it all and get away relatively scot-free.

"Fine, I'll go myself," Narui snapped, suddenly enraged by the silence.

" _Naruto_ ," Kabushi barked.

The blond bit his lower lip, face contracting into a miserable grimace. "Why?" the teen crumbled. "Why won't you save Obito? Why won't you let me help?"

Kabushi closed his eyes, and the grin-splitting face of Naruto's from the day before drifted through his mind. How could he snatch away the warm atmosphere Naruto and Minato had because of his own selfish wants? The plans were flimsy, full of holes and room for errors – it was inevitable one way or another Konoha would catch wind of it and become suspicious of him. If anything went awry, Kakashi wanted to be the only one in trouble. He  _absolutely_ _couldn't_  take Naruto's smile away and drag Naruto down with him to suffer under Konoha's distrusting, scorning eyes; Minato's scorning eyes.

"Do you honestly believe we're left here alone? Someone will come to check on us," Kabushi said instead, in place of his thoughts.

"They'll see my clone and think I'm still here," Narui argued. " Or I'll send clones to Obito's team instead!"

"But  _you_  don't know what will happen to Obito, or where to find him."

"I- I'll get my clones to protect yours," the boy suggested hesitantly.

Kabushi shook his head. "I know how you fight; it's reckless brute force. You're not suitable for stealth protection missions." They would be against trained Rock ninjas, and Kakashi knew his clone would have a high chance of dispelling before Kabushi had a chance to save Obito.

Nevertheless, Narui was relentless in his persistance. "Then-" Narui began again, "Then we'll leave clones here! You said there was only a  _chance_  they might invade from this point, right Sensei? It'll have a less likely chance of popping here, and we can save Obtio!"

"It'll only be a clone.  _Even were_  the Iwa nin not to attack, the captain, or  _someone_ ,  _will_  check up on us. A clone is still only a clone. If anyone looks close enough, they will be able to tell immediately."

"Can't we take the chance?"

Kabushi gave his blond student a grim stare, opting not to voice what the boy already knew.

But Narui wouldn't give in. "Please, Sensei." Narui begged. "We have to do  _something."_

 _Don't,_ Kabushi wanted to shout at the boy, even as he outwardly pressed his lips into a firm stubborn line. The more Naruto begged, the quicker Kabushi's resolution to let Obito go crumbled. But he really shouldn't bring Naruto into this mess.

He desperately tried to hold up the crumbling wall, but every time he touched it, the quicker it burst into dust. Kabushi owed Obito  _so much_. Nothing of him truly wanted to leave Obito to die again. His brain knew it, his heart knew it, his soul knew it, and his body knew it, as Kabushi had already been trying so hard not to run off to his teammates' aid without consideration of the consequences.

"Can't we at least try?" Kabushi dimly heard Naruto cry one last time, voice breaking in misery. The blond's voice ended in an almost whining beg. Anything to save a teammate – Kabushi recalled just how much Naruto had been willing to risk to save Sasuke.

Kabushi clenched his gloved fists, hand drifting unconsciously his covered eye where it stung slightly under the hitai-ate. Was it just him, or was Obito's eye threatening to cry at the idea of being abandoned once again?  _That crybaby. That…_  "… fine," Kabushi whispered reluctantly.

The blond's head snapped up in disbelief.

"I'll take a while to cross the country to Hidden Grass," Kabushi said instead of answering to Narui inquisitive gaze. "We're going now," before he changed his mind.

From the corner of his eye, Kabushi saw a smile of relief slowly flooding Narui's face. A small one wanted to bloom on his own face, even as Kabushi tried to keep it down. But he couldn't help it, because suddenly, it felt like Obito was finally safe, and the icy needles poking his heart were finally detracting their claws. Finally, he could breathe once again.

The two of them took off together, leaving a clone of their selves behind. Kabushi ran soundlessly by Narui's side, keeping low to the ground to attract as little attention as possible. Kabushi tried to stay confident, but with each step, he knew the two of them were closer and closer to being exposed. The lengthy journey from their post to Hidden Grass stretched too extensively for Kabushi's liking. They'd keep to the ground, the trees, behind rocks, every step of the way, making the journey agonisingly longer than it needed to be, and yet only a margin safer.

In an attempted to be ready for any attack from the Iwa troops, every possible path had at least one shinobi stationed for security. The silver-haired man had a hard time sneaking past his comrades without feeling a heavy guilt at the thought of abandoning his post and duty to everyone village, just for his best friend. It seemed no matter what choice he chose, there was no way around feeling guilty.

The two of them were barely half the way to Kusa when Kabushi suddenly flung himself behind a pile of fallen trees. Narui followed suit, even though he was still clueless of what had startled his sensei. "What?" the blond asked softly.

The Hatake blinked before jumping up. "Nothing." He headed towards the trees again, an intense look of concentration on his face.

It wasn't much later when the blond spoke up once again, noticing his teacher's odd behaviours. " _What?"_  Narui insisted, crouching low on a branch as he saw his teacher turn his head back in an increasing frequency.

Kabushi's single grey-blue eye flickered paranoid, searching for things he couldn't see. "Nothing," Kabushi finally said once more, after a moment. But he knew he couldn't just rely on his eyes. He could  _see_  nothing, but… "Narui, head back," the man ordered suddenly.

"I'm not leaving you alone!" Narui cried incredulously. "I can help. We've been over this. We're almost there!"

"You shouldn't. If I get caught..." Kabushi began. But saying this would have no effect on the blond, Kabushi knew. The boy would do  _anything_ for his friends, and that's what made Naruto Naruto, no matter how frustrating it was at this very moment. "This has nothing to do with you. Say you didn't even notice I was gone," the silver-haired time-traveler tried once again.

"Make me," Narui said petulantly, as Kabushi expected.

He didn't want Narui to get into trouble. He couldn't drag him into this. Not when Naruto looked so happy with his father. He couldn't take something like that away from him; not when Naruto finally got to spend time with his family – his actual blood related family - for once.

In a last attempt, Kabushi rounded up on his student, looming into his face in a imposing manner. "I am  _ordering_  you as your Jounin Leader to return to you post. I can forbid you to from participating in anymore missions."

Naruto hesitated for a mere second before a fierce glare narrowed on his face. "You can't make me. You're not even a Jounin anymore," the blond retorted with a huff. "Besides, when we get back to the future, you'll probably be thanking me when you spend the day with Obito instead of moping in front of the memorial stone."

"I – " It was very hard to argue with that logic. Kabushi grudgingly admired his student's unshakable resolution, despite himself. "Let's keep going then," the man sighed, giving in.

With that, the two time-travellers continued their way, slower, more cautious, but never doubting their decision. They  _would_  save Obito.

**WWtCH**

\- …or not.

When the Anbu with the glistening ceramic Hawk mask landed in front of the two time-travellers, Kabushi knew why the seemingly empty terrain behind them had made him so paranoid. He'd sensed the Anbu, but Hawk had hidden himself well enough that Kabushi hadn't realised exactly  _what_  he had sensed.

Hawk lowered himself into an offensive stance, ready to spring into action the moment he deemed the two before him to be a threat. "You have disobeyed direct orders from the Hokage," the Anbu stated in military stiffness. "Explain yourselves."

Kakashi tried to explain the situation as vaguely as he could, but it was impossible without explaining exactly  _how_  he knew this information.

"We don't have time for this," Naruto snapped.

"Don't," Kabushi warned the teen beside him, whose fingers were already placed in his favourite hand seal. Naruto sent him a pleading look at his teacher's words, because  _they were so god-damn close!_  Kabushi shook his head reluctantly, casting his eyes to the ground. "Don't," he repeated in a voice lower than a whisper, "Don't fight."

Half of him wanted Naruto to resist his order and charge stubbornly on like he always did. The other half knew just how much of their plan of changing Konoha's future depended on the villages trust for them. They could  _not_  go against Konoha's Anbu military force. Not if they wanted to stay in Konoha.

"Come with us," the Anbu said, voice dry and uncaring. A subtle hint of threat could be heard under it.

"Understood," Kabushi answered.

"What about.." Naruto started in a soft, frantic whisper.

With a heavy heart, the silver-haired man shook his head once more. "Come along," he said. His lone grey-blue eye stared longingly into Hidden Grass even as he dragged Naruto with him, "Follow the Anbu."

They walked back towards the village together, feeling the hostile chakra of the Anbu, now accompanied by two others, surrounding their every step. Naruto dragged his feet the whole way, trying to prolong the journey back and  _away_  from Obito's location even as the military forces around them barked out orders to quicken up. Kabushi held his face tight, trying to let nothing show on his face, but it was so hard because they'd been so _, so_ close.

So  _very_  close.

"Halt," the Anbu, Hawk snapped suddenly. The five men group stopped before the village gates. Just as suddenly, with only a quick nod at the other two Anbu behind the two time-travellers, Hawk disappeared with a leap.

"Where's he going?" Naruto asked, looking around. The Anbu, as Anbu should, stood silently around the two, ignoring the question entirely.

Kabushi took pity on his confused student. "He's reporting to the Hokage," the masked man answered softly, remembering protocol when he'd still been in Anbu in his youth. He stared up into the sky, letting his past (and now the future once more) play across his mind, as his heart sunk lower. It wouldn't be long before little Kakashi learned these same protocols, with his heart closed and hurting, and a lying joker mask on his frozen little face.

It only took a few minute before Hawk came back. The Anbu tilted his head. "Follow me."

For a while, the whole group walked in a depressed silence before Naruto broke it once he noticed where the Anbu was leading them. "Aren't we going back to our spot?" Narui asked confused when the Anbu directed them towards another route. Kakashi knew the Anbu were afraid that they may have planted equipment there to spy or harm the Konoha troops, and they didn't want them to retrieve them back. Not that there would be any, no matter how hard they check. But the masked man knew better than to say it out loud.

"Hokage's orders," Hawk said plainly, never slowing a step, continuing his way to their new assigned position.

They weren't as far this time. In fact, their new location was right by the border of Fire Country and Hidden Grass, as if teasing them; temping them to forget orders and attempt to leave once more. Kabushi bit into his lower lip, resisting his urge and his knowledge that it was  _just right there!_  But Kabushi knew better than to disobey orders twice. Heck, even Naruto knew better than that.

"Get to work," Hawk said coolly.

The Anbu gave them both a rigid glare before bringing his hands together and disappearing from sight. Of course, neither Naruto nor Kakashi were foolish enough to think they were being left alone. Not after their last stunt.

"Sensei …" Naruto started softly, keeping his voice low, but there was nothing else he could say. It was  _not_ going to be alright, and Kabushi knew it too. The silver-haired man had seen what was going to happen – would happen – and no amount of hope could change that.

Kabushi shook his head weakly, working a placating smile on his face. "It's fine, Naruto," he whispered.

"But –"

Kabushi shook his head again. "No. I knew it would happen again. At least now, I can say I truly tried, instead of just standing in fear and shock," Kakashi knew his voice was cracking, and his eye was glistening in unshed tears, but the man forced himself to stand up tall. "Thanks for persuading me to try."

"I'm sorry for being an idiot. If only I had a better plan," Naruto said, looking as bad as Kabushi felt.

Naruto's heart touched Kabushi. The boy had been willing to risk his happy life with his father to disobey the Hokage with him. And now he was apologising for persuading Kabushi for doing something he knew Kabushi would've regretted for the rest of his life if he hadn't. The silver-haired man ran his gloved hand over the boy's blond hair. "No, it's fine," he murmured softly, "And if everything manages to say the same no matter how hard we try to fix it, I'll at least be happy knowing I get to have you as one of my precious students," Kabushi said lovingly.

That was one thing Kakashi could look forward to.

For two days the two fought diligently by the Fire Country-Hidden Grass Border. Putting his whole heart to keeping back the enemy-nin was all Kabushi could do to keep his mind off other, more painful, matters. The silver-haired man could feel Naruto's worried gaze as he pushed himself to the limit every hour. He could feel the Anbu's suspicious gaze as they fought long and hard for the village without a single word – without a single acknowledgement of what they had been caught doing days before.

That was fine with Kabushi. It was fine. In fact, _everything_  was fine.

It  _had_  to be fine. So it  _was_  fine.

_Yes, it was._

* * *

 

 

Kabushi knew what was going to happen. He'd known and lived with it for almost thirty years. He'd managed to step in front of Obito's grave without breaking down for years now. But seeing the boy alive and happy for the past few months brought all his progress backwards.

He couldn't do it. He didn't want the evidence that Obito would be gone again. His heart – his soul – wouldn't be able to handle it.

Naruto had dragged him to the village gates, having heard word that Team Minato was coming back today. They themselves only arrived back to the village a littler earlier than the team did. Kabushi had followed, thinking he could deal with it. And if nothing, he could help save little Kakashi from his pain.

But he couldn't do it.

Every time he looked up, all he saw were flashes of falling rocks and blurred scenery as he was being pushed aside. Then there was nothing but the void of darkness, and in the center of it all, Obito, Obito,  _Obito, Obito, Obito,_ and nothing more. All there was was Obtio with his crushed goggles, half buried under the rocks. Obito with his eyes glistening in pain, but also happiness at seeing Kakashi safe. Obito moving his mouth to cheer them up, when all Kakashi wanted was for him to be able to keep talking forever. Obito giving him his most precious gift, when all he could do was sit there, unable to even tell the boy how much he owed him, how much he wished he could take back  _everything_  he said about him.

How could he help his child-self when he couldn't even face the fact himself?

Naruto, beside Kabushi, could feel his sensei suddenly stiffen beside him. The boy narrowed his eyes, squinting, seeing what caught the older man's attention. In front of them, figures came closer, heading towards the village gates where they stood. The setting sun in the background behind the figures forced a bright glare into his eyes. All he could see were dark silhouettes moving closer and closer, but silhouettes were all the two needed in order to identify the incoming group.

 _One, two, three,_  Kabushi counted in his head. His breath caught the same time Naruto did, both realizing the same point at the same time.  _No fourth member._

Pale hands trembled as he stared at the returning team. No…

Kabushi's fingers clenched, digging nails in this his palm reminding him that yes, this  _was_  reality, and no, there was no escaping it.

He'd known this was going to happen. He'd known  _before_  it happened. But why did it still have to hurt so much? Why did he have to count like there  _might've_ be a fourth dragging his feet along with his team? Why was he still clinging on to that small, improbable,  _impossible_  hope that Obito couldn't be dead?

Two short figures walked slowly, limping every step. A taller figure walked beside them. Kabushi stared hard, unable to break his gaze from them.

His heart leaped suddenly as Kabushi make out a final figure.  _It couldn't be … Obito?_ Kabushi leaned forwards, eye widening, pleading.

But the figure, he wasn't moving on his own. The limp outline of the fourth figure was slung across Minato's back as the blond carried him back to the village. Kabushi grabbed his own cold hands, trying not to let his tremors show.  _And he will never move ever again,_ Kabushi's mind supplied him, even as the man tried not to think about it.

_Obito…_

He'd failed him.  _Again_.


	8. Trust and Treason

**The Kannabi Bridge mission:**

Little Kakashi was in a decidedly better mood when he made it to the training area that day. His mood was due to the quick healing of the bruises he received the day before from the Jounin Exams, of course. His Uncle had said some really aggravating things last night, and the older Hatake's voice had haunted his sleep all night long no matter how hard Kakashi tried to tune it out.

Honestly, he was better off ignoring whatever came out of his Uncle's mouth.

Kakashi stood calmly by the training grounds, forcefully shoving Kabushi's voice to the corner of his mind as he deliberately recited his pack's contents in an attempt to clear his mind. And to wait for the late Uchiha, of course.

Uchiha Obito grow up? As if. The boy couldn't even wake up on time.

Kakashi froze, realising he was dwelling on his Uncle’s words once more. With a hiss, the boy shook his head, casing his mind to other matters. He really  _didn't_ want to think about the things his uncle preached at him.

_But why was it so hard not to?_

A bush to Kakashi's right shook violently at that moment; a tell-tale sign that Obito was here. Sparing a quick glance at Minato-sensei who was sitting on a rock in the middle of the training area, Kakashi let out a small huff, crossing his arms and waiting for the dead last to emerge.

"Did I make it?" a breathless voice called out, crashing to the ground just in front of Kakashi, just as the masked teen had calculated.

Kakashi stared down on Obito, face fixed into a scorn. "You're late," he stated coolly.

"Uh, yeah…" the Uchiha began hesitantly, "Well, on the way, I had to show the way to and old woman carrying luggage, and –"

"I hear enough of that from Kabushi to know that's a lie!"

"Yeah, well, there was something in my eye too…" Obtio continued weakly.

Kakashi glared down on the Uchiha as Minato's calming voice called over to them. "Hey now you two, don't be like that. I'm sure Obito helped an old ladyt" he assured. "I warned Kabushi not to be late to  _his_ mission today regardless of old ladies, and Obito was probably just helping the dear lady Kabushi usually does."

"Yeah!" Obtio agreed readily.

Kakashi frowned. "Pushover," he muttered at Minato before giving the Uchiha another glare. "Ninjas who don't follow the rules and regulations are called trash," Kakashi started, the beginnings of his usual rants.

Behind him, Kakashi could hear his sensei chuckling nervously like he wanted to contradict him. But the Hatake knew he wouldn't. Because he was right. After all, this was exactly what happened to his own father, and how could  _anyone_  deny what happened in front of his own two eyes?

"Shut up!" Obito grumbled, "It's always about the rules with you. What about kindness?"

This was the idiot his Uncle thought he liked? This idiot who was a failure of a ninja who couldn't even tell he was giving them fine advice?

"Hey hey, stop it; you're both in the same team, right?" Rin interrupted, holding her hands out pleadingly. She looked worriedly between the two boys as Kakashi finally let out a breath.

"Fine. Today's an important day anyways."

"Yes," Rin grinned.

Obito blinked. "What? Important? Why?" The utter confusion the boy expressed gave Kakashi's chest an angry stab. How could Obito  _forget_?

"Today is Kakashi's first day as a Jounin, like myself." Minato replied, oblivious to the sudden clenching in Kakashi's chest. "And also the first mission he's going to lead."

"I told you about it, Obtio," Rin tsked, "to give Kakashi a present."

"Oh," the Uchiha glared towards the side, "I wasn't listening," he muttered.

This wasn't supposed to affect him. This wasn't supposed to annoy him. This wasn't supposed to make his chest hurt, so why did the Uchiha's words sting so much? "Tsh, it's not like I want anything from  _you_ anyways." Kakashi said out loud instead, pushing his hate into every word.

The blond Jounin interrupted the two before another argument could take place. "Here you go, Kakashi," Minato said, holding out a three pronged kunai. "It's a special kunai," he finished with a wink.

"And this is from me!" Rin cried enthusiastically presenting him with his own medical pouch.

Kakashi thanked them both, before sneaking a glance at the staring raven-haired boy beside him. He held out his hand.

"What?" Obito snapped, "I'm not giving you _anything_!"

"Oh? Then how about you be useful and carry my stuff?" Kakashi replied dryly, almost unable to keep the bitter tone out of his voice.

"Don't you look down on me!" Obito snarled suddenly, jumping into an offensive stance. "I'm Uchiha Obito from the great Uchiha Clan! I  _will_  surpass you and defeat you!" the goggled boy declared, glaring down Kakashi.

"Boys," Minato chided, and despite the softness, there was a hint of a command in it. The blond lead them under a shaded tree. "Can I explain the mission now? We're almost at the country border."

Kakashi nodded, focusing on the map his sensei laid out before them. Beside him, his teammates listened just as intently, but unlike his teammates, Kakashi's thoughts were elsewhere, unable to free his mind from the web his Uncle's story threw over him the night before.

All that was running through his mind was Kabushi's grand speech. But… be friends with the Uchiha? Kakashi couldn’t care less for the deadlast, and it was obvious Obito didn't like him either. So why should  _he_  be the compassionate one around someone who hated him just as much?

_And what did his Uncle know about them anyways?_

Kakashi stared at his own hand, wondering why he'd held it out expectantly to the Uchiha. Obito already said he forgot about his promotion, so it was obvious the boy wouldn't have gotten anything for him. Yet he’d held out his hand regardless. Was he honestly hoping the Uchiha was only just kidding? Was he honestly hoping for a present from the deadlast?

_…_ _was he hoping that the Uchiha, the kind Uchiha who was nice to_ _everyone_ _, show him same kindness… even when he, Kakashi with his icy frozen heart, didn't deserve it?_

"Team Kakashi, your mission is to sneak behind the enemy and destroy the bridge so they cannot receive their supplies," Minato's sharp voice suddenly cut through.

"Yes sir," Kakashi replied with the rest of his team without a second thought.

The blond nodded, ignorant to the fact Kakashi hadn’t listened to a thing. "Good. I will be in the frontlines diverting their attention away from your group," the man said, likely to take pressure off Kakashi’s first ever experience. Kakashi didn’t need Minato to underestimate him like that. "Let's go to the border. The mission starts now."

* * *

 

 

While Konoha had always been a lush village filled with trees, Hidden Grass could not be rivaled. As the team trekked further and further past their country border, the trees grew larger, the grass greener, and even the mushrooms seemed oversized. Konoha had nothing on Hidden Grass.

Perhaps it was because Kakashi was trying hard to concentrate on everything around him other than his own mind, that he noticed the enemy nins surrounding them right away. It was also the reason why he'd accidentally stopped so unnaturally, alerting the enemy he'd noticed them, instead of discreetly informing his teammates.

"There's twenty of them. Maybe more," Minato informed the group as soon as they were hiding safely behind a large root.

"Let me handle it," Kakashi replied immediately, wanting to make up for the mistake he'd already made. "It's a great chance to try out my new jutsu." Without waiting for an answer, the silver-haired boy clutched his right hand, allowing crackling lightening chakra to build up in his hands.

"Don't," Minato said softly, holding his hand in front of the masked boy, stalling him.

From the corner of his eyes, Kakashi could see the concern on his sensei's face, but he wouldn't have it. " _I'm_  the commander this time, and I can take them out in a second. Just watch me," Kakashi stated firmly.

Maybe, yes – just maybe - , he was doing this mainly for himself and not the team, but the result was still going to be the same. He had to prove he  _was_  strong. He had to prove he wasn't a child, no matter his age, and no matter what Kabushi said. He'd stopped being a child long ago; he was independent and he was  _strong._  He didn't need the help of  _anyone_ but himself.

" _Chidori,"_ Kakashi hissed out, plunging into the woods where the enemy ninjas hid themselves.

Metal kunai clanged against one another as Minato, behind him, shot down the weapons aimed towards him. Kakashi focused on where to kunai originated from, mentally marking down each and every location of the enemy.

Swiftly, the enemy fell, one by one, as the chirping thousand birds of his chidori echoed through the forest.

"One more," Kakashi thought determinately to himself as he rushed forwards once more. The world around him was blurry from the speed he was moving at. It was only too late Kakashi noticed the man had already unsheathed his sword and branded it towards his hurtling body. Kakashi panicked internally, but could only brace himself for pain. There was no longer enough time to stop-

" _Ooph_ ," Kakashi breathed out as he was deposited on the grass from the strong grasp of his sensei. In another blink, their sensei was gone again in a yellow flash, leaving Kakashi with his other two teammates in their hiding spot.

"Your arm!" Rin exclaimed suddenly. It was only then Kakashi realised he had been hurt. His arm bleed profusely from the deep cut the enemy gave him.

"Let's head back to camp. Your wound needs to heal," Minato said, suddenly back with the group once more. A glance at the bloody kunai in his sensei's hand told Kakashi all he needed to know about where the man disappeared off to a second ago.

"I'm fine," Kakashi bit out, suddenly ashamed of his own rushed actions. He was _Jounin_ and he still needed to be saved by his teacher like a lowly Genin.

"What do you mean, 'fine'? You think everything is about you, rushing off and disobeying sensei's order! What kind of commander are you?" Obito yelled at him.

The silver-haired boy shot him a glare. "I don't need to listen to anything you say," Kakashi snapped back at the other. "What were  _you_  doing the whole time? Cowering and crying like a scared baby at the sight of them."

"Boys! Stop it!" Minato barked, voice holding a stricter tone than any of the three heard before. The blond's eyes narrowed slightly, fixing a stare at each of them. "I've said it before," the man stated severely, "and I'll continue saying it. The most important thing to a shinobi is teamwork. Sometimes we have to adapt to the situation; the rules and regulations are not everything."

Kakashi lowered his gaze, feeling the others do so as well. "And Kakashi," Minato began again, voice softer this time, but never losing that metallic touch, "Don't use that jutsu anymore. It's fast and has a powerful destructive power, but your movements are so fast you can't see your opponent's counter until it's too late. It's an incomplete jutsu."

Kakashi kept quiet, clenching his fist, but he nodded all the same. "Good," Minato replied. "Let's head back to camp now."

Kakashi nodded stiffly as he followed after his sensei. Beside him, Rin gave him a reassuring smile. "Don't worry Kakashi; I'll bandage it right up for you, and you'll be as good as new."

**WWtCH**

The day after, Minato and Team Kakashi split up, going at their individual missions. Team Kakashi's mission was going smoothly in Kakashi's opinion, until Rin suddenly disappeared.

Obito immediately rushed after the Iwa shinobi retreating with Rin, when Kakashi stopped him with a shout. The Uchiha turned back, eyes aflame. "What are you talking about? We have to go after them!"

"She won't be killed right away," Kakashi pointed out logically, voice mechanically bland, his emotional state the exact polar opposite to the raven-haired Chunin's. "The enemy will likely interrogate her for our aims before holding her prisoner. Rin's a medic-nin, and as long as she looks after the enemies' casualties, she'll be treated well. We have to finish our mission  _before_  the enemy finds out."

Kakashi watched as Obito grinded his teeth in frustration. "What about Rin  _safety?!"_  the boy exploded out. "Is that less important than our mission?"

"We signed up to do this once we entered the Shinobi force. There will always be danger and sacrifices."

Obito's fists trembled by his sides. "After all Rin has done for us, patching us up whenever we're hurt, always making sure we're okay, you’re just leaving her like that? I'm going to rescue Rin! I don't care what you say!"

" _I_  am your commander," the Jounin retorted back in a snarl. "I was given this role because I am fit to make proper decision. You are letting your emotions run free." There was only a slight pause before Kakashi continued on. "Emotions are unnecessary things. Shinobi are tools, and we  _finish_  the mission no matter what."

Kakashi tried not to think too deeply about it when Obito's ebony eyes widened into a disbelieving,  _pitying_  look. "You … do you  _really_  believe that?" the boy asked tentatively.

Kakashi's heart seemed to thud harder at the words, as his mind threw up images and conversations he'd rather not dwell on ever again. "Yes." he hissed out before it got out of hand. "Of course I do. That is the way of a ninja. Don't be so naïve! What happens to those who don't follow the rules …"

"I believe the White Fang was a hero," Obito murmured softly, interrupting Kakashi. His tone was quiet, but the sheer strength he conveyed in those words stopped Kakashi's speech in its tracks. Obito's eyes suddenly snapped upwards, meeting Kakashi's blue-grey eyes in a fierce glare. "You say those who don't follow the rules are trash," he spat out, "but those who abandon their friends are  _worse_  than trash."

The boy abruptly turned away, having said all he needed to say, and furiously ran towards the enemy's hideout where Rin was being held hostage, without another look back.

The Chunin's words echoed in the wind as Kakashi grinded his teeth, hands shaking in tightly clenched fists _. How dare he - what did he know?_ The silver-haired boy turned sharply on his heels, determinately heading away from Obito.

_That stupid idiot; talking about things he didn't know. Stupidly ignoring the mission, disobeying direct orders …_

"Damn it," Kakashi hissed out to himself as his strides gradually slowed down to a stop. He laid a gloved hand on his stomach, trying to force up his anger at Obito –  _anything_  to get rid of that uneasy feeling inside.

_Stupid, stupid deadlast…_

" _After all Rin has done for us; patching us up whenever we're hurt?! Always making sure we're okay?" Obtio._

" _Don't worry Kakashi; I'll bandage it right up for you, and you'll be as good as new." Rin._

Kakashi pressed his hand harder against his stomach.

" _The most important thing to a shinobi is teamwork. Sometimes we have to adapt to the situation; the rules and regulations are not everything." Minato-sensei._

" _He was a coward, hiding behind the word of rules._   _He was afraid to think for himself and simply did what he was told without question._   _…why are you shoving away your emotions when you feel you can't deal with them?_   _Why do you think there are people around you for? " Kabushi._

" _Do you_ ** _really_** _believe that? … I believe the White Fang was a hero."_

"…"

With an annoyed hiss, Kakashi turned around, sprinting towards Obito, hating himself, yet feeling weights roll off his back with every step. He was a hypocrite. He was a disgraceful ninja, abandoning his mission just like his father, and yet, for some odd reason the only thing on his mind was his teammates. He couldn't let them die.

And as he was running, Kakashi didn't know, but he had already changed the future. That minute he'd taken to make up his mind because of his Uncle's additional nagging was all that was needed for the future to change drastically. He had made up his mind ten seconds sooner than he would've had Kabushi not been there, and that ten seconds shifted everything out of place.

He was ten seconds sooner getting to Obito.

Ten seconds sooner to notice the enemy.

Ten seconds sooner to draw out his father's memento.

Ten seconds sooner to attack.

Ten seconds sooner to avoid what would've been a fatal slice at his left eye that once upon a time he'd been seconds too late to dodge.

Kakashi panted, perched on a thick tree branch, straining his ears to pick up the sounds of the enemy who'd slipped away once more. Blood gushed down his face from the partial cut he received clean through his left eyebrows, but nothing lower.

"Kakashi!" Obito exclaimed in fear.

"The enemy is skilled," the masked boy mused, before glancing up at the crying Uchiha with an exasperate sigh. "Something in your eye again? Stop crying; he just nicked me. I dodged before he could gouge my eye."

Kakashi let out another sigh as Obito scrubbed furiously at his tearing eyes. Yet, he couldn't help that sudden bubble in his chest seeing Obtio cry for his sake. Nevertheless, "Keep up your guard, he's still out there somewhere," Kakashi murmured quietly.

His head spun slightly from the rapid blood loss, but Kakashi bit his lip as he tried to bear it and focus on the environment. He didn't have time to bandage it with the enemy still around, and he still had to cover Obito's back because who knows what would happen if he left the idiot all alone?

Kakashi could feel the goggled boy shaking behind him, hand clutching firmly a kunai. He'd expected that Obito was still crying and too afraid to move, and that's why when the raven-haired boy suddenly turned around so sharply, Kakashi feared an Iwa-nin had grabbed him.

"Obito!" Kakashi cried, leaping up from his spot on the branch. He didn't know when he'd started caring for Obito so much, but Kakashi could feel the utter  _fear_  in his stomach for his teammate just then. Kakashi spun his head towards Obito's spot, body coiled and ready to leap out to defend the Uchiha.

But the Uchiha wasn't snatched. The Uchiha  _ran_  out himself, kunai brandished and stabbing something even  _Kakashi_  hadn’t notice. " _Nobody hurts my friend_!" Obito cried out angrily, thrusting out his kunai in one smooth movement.

_Obito? Friend?_

The air shimmered in front of Obito revealing the enemy nin, blood spouting in the man's mouth. "How?" the man coughed out, falling to the ground.

Kakashi watched Obito turn around, his gaze suddenly drawn up to Obito's eyes.  _Obito's swirling red eyes._ "The Sharingan," he whispered out in amazement.

"Yeah," the raven-haired boy agreed distractedly, staring into his own hands. "I can see the movement and flow of chakra."

Kakashi hummed a wordless reply and raised a hand to wipe blood out of his eyes. Obito’s head jerked up at his movement. Immediately, his face drained of colour. "It's bleeding so much," the goggled boy whispered, voice trembling in shock. Uchiha's hand clenched and unclenched rapidly like he wanted to help but didn't know what to do, while his eyes stared mesmerised by the glistening, flowing blood.

Kakashi rolled his eyes. "It's a head wound. Of course it's bleeding so much, Idiot." The masked boy couldn't help the almost endearing tone on the insult, unable to stop the Obito's strong declaration of 'friend' from echoing through his head.

"B-but-"

 _What happened to the Idiot's bravery?_ _"_ Obito," the silver-haired boy barked. "Snap out of it. I'm not going to die."

"Y- Yeah, I know that."

"Good." Kakashi reached into his pouch and drew out Rin's medical pouch. For a few seconds, the masked boy couldn't help but stare it at, a guilty feeling rising from his stomach at the idea that he'd even considered leaving her. "I have Rin's kit. Let's patch it up and rescue Rin."

"Ah- yes." Obito nodded. The boy swallowed the lump in his throat. "Yes," he said again, voice stronger this time. "Let's save Rin."

Getting into the cave was easy after having defeated the guarding ninja outside already. It wasn't long before the two boys found Rin tied up at the end of the cave, another Rock ninja looming over her.

"Rin's chakra flow's irregular," Obito said immediately, activating his sharingan.

Kakashi nodded. "She's under a genjutsu, most likely – to get information from her quickly."

Obito heeded his teammate’s words, storing the piece of knowledge away for the future. "So what do we do now?" he asked, this time having truly accepted Kakashi as  his commander.

Unfortunately, the moment Kakashi turned towards Uchiha, the Iwa-nin noticed them as well, delving into a grand, mocking speech at the two. Kakashi ignored it the best he could, trying to convey his plan through his eyes to Obito instead. And then, with trust in Obito, Kakashi leaped into action, heading straight for the enemy nin.

It was brilliant in a way, Kakashi had to admit. Obito had kept the enemy's arms down while Kakashi could freely attack the man without fear of retaliation. Alone, it would've taken Kakashi forever just to even land one hit. But together … perhaps this was why Minato kept harping on and on about teamwork and trust in the team. It was  _efficient_.

" _Kai!"_  Kakashi called out the moment he landed in front of Rin. The girl's eyes snapped back into focus as Obito and himself worked in tandem to check over the girl for injuries. There was an almost knowing look on Rin's face Kakashi pretended he didn't see, as the girl saw them working so well together.

"You think you've gotten away?" A harsh voice sounded behind the trio. Three pairs of eyes honed on the Iwa-nin who'd stood up once more, hands pressed into a starting seal. _"Doton! Iwa yado kuzushi!"_ (Earth Style: Rock Lodgement Destruction) the man cried out quickly, before the group could even react.

The cave rumbled dangerously as the rocks overhead started to shower gravel on top of them. "Move out! Quickly," Kakashi called, already racing to the entrance as he gestured for his teammates to do so as well. His two blue-grey eyes surveyed the terrain as he ran, efficiently dodging any of the falling stones. Kakashi would never realise just how lucky he was, due to a mere ten second difference earlier that day.

By the time Team Kakashi reached the entrance of the cave, they were all accounted for, all none too worse for wear. The three of them skidded to a stop in front of the collapsed cave, where their eyes widen as the surveyed the mess outside. A mass of backup Iwa-nin littered around the cave entrance, each one looking meaner and stronger than the last.

"We can't take all of them down," Rin whispered softly, eyes widening with every nin she gazed across . Kakashi bit into his lips under his mask, knowing she was correct. They'd avoided one danger and plunged straight into another.

Rin and Obito fidget anxiously beside him when the enemy started some sort of gloating speech. The silver-haired boy tried to stay calm, because he was commander, responsible for getting his teammates out of this situation. Kakashi ran over the options, dangers, and risks. There was only a single route with the highest possibility.

"I can do it." he murmured lowly to his teammates.

The two of them glanced at him from the corner of their eyes. "How?"

"The  _Chidori_."

Obito let out a muted gasp. "You  _can't_. Remember what happened last time?" he hissed out just as Rin muttered, "But Sensei forbad you from using it anymore."

"I know," Kakashi whispered sharply, "but it's our only way." He ignored the Iwa-nin to turn to the two, desperation in his gaze. "Look, I can get them, but I as sensei said, I can't see my opponent's counter until it's too late. I-" Kakashi took a breath, "I need your help. When I'm attacking them, I need you two to take care of anyone or anything about to hit me."

Obito clenched his fists, looking unsure and scared of the responsibility placed upon him. "But-" he began.

"I trust you," Kakashi cut in, staring firmly into the other boy's eyes.

For a second, Obito seemed to quiver, before the Uchiha suddenly straightened out his back. His sharingan whirled into sight with his determination. "You can count on me," he declared, his every sign of worry warping into confidence. "I'll cover your back."

Kakashi nodded, reaching down to pull the weapons pouch off his belt. He threw it over to Obito without hesitation. "In case you run out," the silver-haired boy said, before reaching for his right hand again, and letting chakra build up on it.

"Got it," Obito replied. The raven-haired boy closed his eyes briefly before opening them up to furiously spinning sharingans once more.

"Ready?" Kakashi asked. At Obito's nod, Kakashi was gone.

The silver-haired Jounin was nothing more than a white blur of chakra as he sped at the Iwa ninja. In his wake, he left fallen shinobi, all clutching various parts of their bodies where a burnt gaping wound appeared. Behind him, in the safety of large shielding rocks of the cave, Rin and Obito successively threw kunai after kunai, deflecting anything thrown Kakashi's way. If the Chunin were lucky, they even managed to down a man before he got too close to their teammate.

The three of them managed this system for a while, before Kakashi, amidst throwing back another enemy nin, admitted to himself that it would only be a matter of time before they could no longer keep this up.

And how right he was.

A kunai from Obito whizzed past Kakashi's ear, but even at the speed he was moving at, the silver-haired boy could see that the weapon missed its mark. The Rock ninja continued rushing forwards, while the Hatake desperately tried to change his course. But the momentum was too great; there wasn't enough time –

"Kakashi, watch out!" the masked boy dimly heard Obito shouting.

Kakashi sensed Obito running forwards, perhaps trying to intercept the attack with his own body, even as a rapid succession of kunai flew past trying to hit the Rock ninja. Nevertheless, he wouldn't be able to make it, Kakashi could tell already. Obito couldn't match his speed.

Kakashi narrowed his eyes in that short millisecond, focusing his attention on keeping the charging sphere in his hand stable. " _It's really a shame, when the moment he finally accepted someone for who they were; finally forgave himself; finally saw the whole world past that bricked wall he built himself, the one he owed it all to was snatched away from this world. Never knowing how much the boy owed him,"_ Kabushi's story echoed through Kakashi's mind.

If Kakashi failed, who would help the deadlast from this predicament? If he was going to fall, he was going to take the enemy with him. And Obito; Obito would be safe, because Kakashi owed him that much, and he definitely was going to repay him.

Kakashi thrust his hand forwards, hoping, pleading, it would reach before that gleaming sword in the enemy's hand could penetrate though his own chest. If he timed this right, he could take out a majority of the enemies before he bled out. And if this was the only way to save his teammates – " _I believe the White Fang was a hero" –_  then so be it.

"NOO!" Obito's howling scream echoed.

Kakashi heard the sword cutting through the wind, aimed for his heart in a whistling motion, and then– Kakashi's head rang _,_ thrown into a splitting pain as spots cover his vision. Through the haze, he felt a strong clenching in his stomach –  _was he stabbed?_  He tried to run, but somehow that didn’t work, and  _this wasn't what was supposed to happen!_  How would he save Obito and Rin now? How could he save them, if all he could see was splotches of black and yellow, and…  _Yellow?_

Suddenly Kakashi could see again, feeling himself fly backwards. The boy blinked, staring up into the smiling face of his teacher who'd just thrusted him out of his strong grasp. What was Minato-sensei doing here?

"Got you!" Kakashi dimly heard Obito say, as the goggled boy caught him and cushioned his fall.

The Hatake jumped up immediately at the voice. "Obito," he cried, snapping his head over to check over the boy, because last he recalled, Obito was being an utter _fool_ and attempting to throw his own body as a shield for Kakashi. "Are you alright?"

Obito grin at him. "Yeah, I'm fine thanks to sensei." Kakashi glanced over at the yellow flash that was Minato-sensei, confusion on his face. Obito caught the other boy's question at once. "You know that weird kunai sensei gave you yesterday? I was throwing kunai out of your pouch when I grabbed that one by mistake. I threw it 'cause I didn't have time to exchange it for another one. And then sensei suddenly appeared when I let go of it."

"That worrywart," Kakashi muttered, shaking his head at the audacity of Minato, rigging his own present. Still, for once, Kakashi was thankful for Minato's overprotectiveness. Who knew how horribly this battle would've ended had sensei not been there?

As quick as he'd been up in the front lines, if not quicker, Minato defeated all the Iwa-nins before him. Then, he rushed up to his precious students the moment he was certain there weren’t any more of them hiding in the shadows.

"Boys, Rin, what happened?" he demanded, but the worry seeping into his voice was not hard to miss.

Kakashi sat in front of Rin as her hands glowed green, healing his many wounds. While Obito was willing and determined to knock the incoming dangers out of Kakashi’s path, he was still the deadlast. Kakashi's many wounds were proof of that.

Rin looked up from her work, ashamed and unable to look her sensei in the eye. "Sorry, if it weren't for me getting caught-" she started, so guilty.

"It's my fault," Kakashi interrupted. "As a commander, I was not able to watch out for my teammates and made the decision to abandon the mission for Rin."

"No! Kakashi's a great commander! I just ran off against his orders!"

"Ah, and I should've been paying attention to my surrounding-"

"But I made the decision to drop the mission in the end."

"Yeah, but it's my fault I refused to listen to you, and-"

Minato gave out a loud laughed, before waving a hand at his bickering team to get their attention. "Alright, alright; I think I know what happened."

Kakashi dropped his head. "The mission…" the boy began.

"-is not finished yet." Minato finished for the silver-haired jounin. "There's still time to finish it, isn't there?" he pointed out.

"Yes," Kakashi agreed, "but as the commander, the mission should have been my top priority, and I-"

"-should have left Rin?"Minato suggested softly. The blond shook his head, looking sadly into the sky. "I can't speak for you three, but you're all family to me. If I were in your place, I wouldn't have had been able to continue the mission knowing one of you might've been killed while I was doing so. That's not how ninjas are expected to act, but everyone forgets that we are human too. We have feelings and we have families like everyone else." Minato smiled, ruffling Kakashi's hair in a grateful manner. "I think you did the right thing. Thank you for saving Rin."

A warm bubbling feeling tickled in Kakashi's chest at his sensei's actions. Beside the blond, Obito nodded fervidity at Minato-sensei's words, and Rin beside him did the same, a sincere smile on both their faces.

Kakashi felt his face heat up in embarrassed, unfamiliar at being at the receiving end of such heartfelt smiles. The boy coughed into his hand. "Right," he said stiffly, turning his head away, "Let's finish the mission, then." The boy turned sharply, walking towards the general direction of the Kannabi Bridge, only picking up his pace when he felt the others following him.

" _He's embarrassed~!"_ Kakashi heard Obito croon from behind.

"Shut up and do your job," Kakashi snapped, face flushing at the boy's words. Obito's infectious laugher rang out cheerily, enticing both Rin and Minato-sensei to join in. "I changed my mind; I still don't like you, Obito," Kakashi shot out. But they all could tell he didn't mean it.

* * *

 

 

**After the mission:**

The sun was on their backs as Team Seven made their way back to their village. Halfway through the journey back, Rin had let out a loud yawn. Minato had regarded her thoughtfully and then asked if she wanted a piggy-back ride the rest of the way hime.

She'd accepted just to tease the boys – or rather Obito, who had whined about wanting one too.

"Oh look, we have a welcome party," Minato pointed out as they neared the Konoha Gates, one hand supporting Rin as his other gestured straight ahead. Kakashi glanced up, a building smile on his face as he noticed his Uncle. There seemed to be a frantic look on the man's face, but the boy listed it off as worry. Because honestly, that man, like sensei, was  _such_  a worrywart.

Kakashi was starting to accept that bubbling joy inside, when he noticed how the ever-dazed look had yet to retreat from Kabushi's face. He frowned uneasily, because his Uncle was supposed to be one of annoying grins and mischievous leers, not this gutted creature. Beside Kabushi, Narui, who had been in a daze of his own, suddenly seemed to snap out of it and abruptly shook his Uncle with vigour.

Kabushi's face quivered at Nauri’s inaudible words, before it filled up with such liveliness Kakashi didn't know  _how_  it was even possible.

"You're all safe!" Kabushi called out with relief in his voice the moment the team passed through Konoha's sturdy Gates. The man let his single eye wash over Minato before landing on the small figure of Rin on the blond's back.

"Of course; it was nothing." Obito answered for the whole team, acting like it was the simplest mission they'd ever been on.

Kabushi grinned at him and patted the raven-haired chunin on the head (and heck, even gave him a tight hug!) before turning to Kakashi. "How was your first mission as a Jounin?" he asked. Kakashi might've imagined it, but the way his Uncle asked the question seemed almost hinting at something deeper.

-Like he knew  _something_ had occurred. Like he knew how Kakashi had finally made peace with Obito. Like he knew how Kakashi finally understood what everyone had been trying to tell him all along. Like he knew how Kakashi finally felt  _free_ from all his self-placed constraints _._

"Successful," Kakashi answered succinctly, because somehow he felt certain Kabushi would understand from merely that.

The mask on the older Hatake's face stretched as the man smile. His pale, gloved hand slowly drifted up to his covered left eye, almost in an unconscious motion. "That's great," he said softly. "I'm glad."

Kakashi nodded, his body warm. He didn't even notice the enthusiastic chattering of Narui and Obito off to the side as the Uchiha dramatically talked about all he was allowed to about the mission.

"Well, I don't know about all of you, but I think we all need a rest after that mission," Minato pointed out as he slowly lead his team back into the village.

Obito agreed happily as Kakashi matched pace with his Uncle. The silver-haired boy peeked expectantly at his Uncle from the corner of his eye, who grinned happily at him. "I'll make you something to eat when we get home," Kabushi answered.

Kakashi shrugged, trying to look nonchalant. "If you want to, I suppose," he responded, lip slightly quirked, because he was finally going open up his heart to Kabushi, to give this family thing a try after the disaster that was Sakumo.

"Nothing tastes better than eggplant miso soup –" Kabushi started to say, just as he was halted by the suddenly appearance of an Anbu, directly in their path.

"Apologies," the masked shinobi addressed to Minato before darting forwards at them.

Kakashi tensed as the Anbu approached, but the shinobi completely disregarded the young teen. "What are you doing?" Kakashi cried out as the Anbu pulled harshly at his Uncle.

"These two are being taking in for questioning."

Kakashi felt himself freeze for a millisecond before shooting out a confused "Why?" just as Minato asked "What happened?" in a sharp, military manner.

"Treason," the Anbu answered simply, violently whisking Kabushi and Narui away from him in a whirl of scattered leaves.

Kakashi tried to keep his face impassive - tried not to let the sudden jolt of betrayal he felt from his Uncle show on his face. But the boy wasn't sure how well he faired when Minato-sensei placed a comforting hand on his back not a moment later.

_Treason?_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Why did Kakashi think the person on Minato's back was Obito instead of Rin? Because that was what his frantic mind had expected. And the silhouettes he saw coming towards them morphed into what his fear had expected to see.
> 
> And no, the Anbu did not purposely drag Kakashi and Naruto away in front of Team Minato for them to see. Like I said in ch7, the two of them only arrived back at the village a little while earlier as well. It was just bad timing. D:


	9. Interrogation

Kabushi found himself being led into a cell the moment he got his bearings. Naruto was nowhere to be seen, but Kabushi suspected the young blond was getting the same treatment. There was no doubt in Kabushi's mind that they were placed in separate cells as far away as each other as possible; it was the logical thing to do. Kabushi understood why, but he hated the idea of leaving his student to fend for himself.

 _Treason_ , the Anbu had said.

 _Treason: the betrayal of one’s own country (or village, in this case) by acting against it – in an attempt to overthrow the Leader, or aid the enemy_.

Kabushi hated that word. He knew the severity of the situation, especially considering they were in a ninja village where the safety of the village was everything to them. And he also knew how badly this looked for the two time-travellers.

He really should not have dragged Naruto into this. Being suspected of treason was a harsh enough, but it was especially worse with the way the Anbu had revealed their offence in front of the ones they cared most about, in that bland, uncaring tone, without a drop of remorse. Kabushi's stomach was already gnawing on itself, trying not to think about how his younger self must be reacting to this whole thing. The thought of how badly Naruto was affected only doubled that frantic state of turmoil into something that was overfilling his mind.

Kabushi didn't have the chance to glance over at his precious student to see the boy's reaction when they were viciously yanked away from the group. But Kabushi could guess at it, and was heart breaking; bad timing or not, Naruto shouldn't have had to been incriminated of treason in front of his own father of all people.

Naruto was just an innocent child (well, maybe not completely innocent consider he  _was_  a shinobi. But to Kabushi, Naruto would always be that loud, obnoxious twelve-year-old who tried to prank him the first second they met). The boy wasn't fit to be place under the gruesome grilling of the Torture and Interrogation Squad – especially after that devastating accusation.

The silver-haired man shuffled impatiently along the dusty holding cell. He wanted nothing more than to just get the interrogation over with, but waiting was part of the game. Because with every passing new second, doubt and worry grew a little more – not that Kabushi didn't have mountain full of anxiety plaguing his every thought already.

It was much, much later when an Anbu finally appeared before Kabushi, with nothing more than a sharp nod to direct the silver-haired time-traveller to the bars of the cell. Kabushi kept silent and held out his hands, recalling procedure. He tried to keep his posture relaxed even as the Anbu slapped on chakra-repressing cuffs with a sharp, stinging flick of the wrists.

"This way," the Anbu said succinctly, walking in front of the restrained man while a second presence followed them in rear.

Kabushi trailed dutifully, hoping at the very least 'good behaviour' counted for something to whatever decision they decided for his and Naruto's fates.

To be absolutely honest, Kabushi wasn't too worried for his own interrogation; he had plenty of practice – almost thirty years' worth of experience in the shinobi arts drilled into his mind. What Kabushi feared most was, again, Naruto. The blond had suffered through scorning for majority of his life for something he was burdened with the moment he was born, and yet he still enthusiastically devoted his life to protecting his village. Naruto was a loyal ninja through and through – more faithful and dedicated to Konoha than most could even imagine. Now, for this, for some stupid mistake Kabushi made (and it  _was_ Kabushi's fault, no matter how hard the boy would try to argue against it), Naruto would have to suffer yet again, in the hands of shinobi he'd already won the love and loyalty of in the future. The Jounin only hoped it wouldn't hurt Naruto's cheerful, optimistic mentality as much as he was imagining it would.

Because if that was the case, Kabushi didn't know if he could ever forgive himself for it.

Lost in his own thoughts, it wasn't long before Kabushi was lead into his designated interrogation room. It was an empty room, devoid of any furniture except for a desk and two stiff wooden chairs. There were wide, daunting, reflective walls that covered all three sides of the wall Kabushi wasn't facing, reflecting back his slouched, lonesome figure in the room. Anyone with any sense could tell immediately those reflective walls were one-way mirrors, showing every twitch he made to the unnamed amount of ninjas watching from the outside. It was a room designed for intimidation, boldly stating to Kabushi that nothing he did would be missed. But then again, it was also intimidation in a relatively non-threatening way, Kabushi had to admit, recalling all the other rooms in the building that housed the Intelligence Division that he could've been place in instead.

The silver-haired man tried to limit his worry, pushing a relaxed slouch into his posture, pretending like he didn't have the blaringly significant secret of 'time-travelling' to hide. He did well for the first twenty minutes, before his toes twitched nervously as his ever-running mind worried excessively about what was happening to Naruto while he was stuck in this cold, solitary room.

The Torture and Interrogation Team really knew how to do their job efficiently.

It was after those thoughts that the door to the room slide open. For a second Kabushi had expected the sight of a scarred face cover in a black bandanna, as was so characteristic of Ibiki Morino, the Head of the T and I unit. Who walked in, however, was not. Kabushi supposed it was to be expected, after speeding through quick mental math to note that Ibiki would've been merely fifteen at this time - not too much older than his younger self.

Yamanaka Inoichi on the other hand, was twenty-six at the current time, at the prime of his life.

The familiar shinobi strolled in, each step carefully timed and each gesture carefully calculated. It was almost amusing how movements intended for intimidation merely gave Kabushi comfort as he recognised it being so inherently Konoha- esque. It was something even Kabushi had been taught briefly during his Anbu years.

Kabushi sat up straighter, flashing a friendly grin from under his mask. "You must be my interrogator," Kabushi commented. If Kabushi were alone, the silver-haired man would've bravely pushed the limit of his interrogator and use all he'd learned from his whole shinobi life to twist the outcome to his liking (or at least as much as he could). But he wasn't alone; Naruto was with him, and Kabushi knew he had to tread with caution.

"Hatake Kabushi," the blond greeted.

Silver haired flopped to the side as the man tilted his head, letting his voice stretch with his usual drawl, "How unusual. We have the same name."

Kabushi was testing the waters.

"Amusing," Inoichi deadpanned. Green eyes stared blandly back at the silver-haired shinobi sitting before him. "Let's get straight to the point, why don't we?" Inoichi asked rhetorically, his gaze sharp as ever as they observed every gesture made in response. Kabushi held still, waiting for the man to continue, and Inoichi leaped straight into it. "What is your purpose in Konoha?"

Kabushi wasn't too certain about Inoichi's interrogation methods. By the time Kabushi had gotten to know the Intelligence Department, Ibiki had been in charge of the T and I unit. But if Inoichi had been the head before Ibiki, the younger man must have had been apprenticed under the blond for a while, so their methods couldn't've been too different. Kabushi considered the Yamanaka's attitude towards his cheeky words. If the silver-haired man was reading this right, Kabushi understood he and Naruto weren't under too much suspicion at the moment, considering the relative lack of hostility the blond was treating him with.

That, however, would likely change if Kabushi didn't cooperate with the man, or the man found something glaringly suspicious with Kabushi answers.

On a positive note, Kabushi and Naruto already had a reasonably worked out backstory ready. Their story wasn't as smooth and consistent as Kabushi had hoped for it to be, but under every-day conversation, it held relatively well. Under the pressured questions of interrogators, on the other hand, Kabushi could only hope they didn't delve too deep into it.

On the other hand, Kabushi supposed, he could always tell the truth and say that Naruto and himself were from the future. But Naruto would never admit it if Kabushi couldn't get in touch with the boy during the interrogation. The boy was a loudmouth, that was a fact, but under all that, Kabushi knew the kid would try his hardest for his sensei – and as per the latest order Kabushi had given, that was to hide the fact that they were from the future.

Besides that, Kabushi was no idiot. Between having inconsistent information or saying they were from the future, Kabushi knew which one sound more realistic, and frankly more sane. So honestly, blurting out the truth was no option. Not under these conditions where the stronger the Interrogation Squad were convined they were lying, the greater the 'Torture' part of their name came into play. Kabushi would be damned if he let another one of his mistakes harm his precious student once more.

The silver-haired man considered his words carefully before speaking. "My purpose? As I've mentioned to the Hokage before, I came here to find my brother. I hadn't known he was …  _gone_  already." Kabushi tilted his head to the side, letting his gaze stare on. He held silent for a moment before murmuring a soft, truthful, "I wish I came earlier," even though he knew he didn't have control over his travel here to this Konoha to begin with.

Inoichi seemed to accept that answer as he quickly fired another. "What are your intentions here?"

"Kakashi," the time-traveler answered unhesitantly. It was more than that, but the sake of young Kakashi was high on that list.

"Oh?"

Kabushi let his mind wander, remembering how utterly long it had taken  _him_  to get where his younger self was now. He had changed after Obito's death – for the better, some had said – but it truly wasn't; outwardly maybe, but inside Kabushi had been a mess of tangled emotions that had him wanting to cut and discard the unyielding knots instead of unweaving them back into its proper place. "Sakumo's death affected my nephew more you can imagine. I suppose it's a Hatake thing to keep our emotions to ourselves, but I can't leave Kakashi alone like that," Kabushi declared, conviction in his tone as he stared unflinchingly at the Yamanaka, "Narui always preached the importance of family, and it seems like he's absolutely right. Kakashi is getting better nowadays."

A blond eyebrow arched into a suspicious expression. "For Kakashi's sake, hm? You don't think we’re ignorant of the fact that you've realised what happened to Sakumo by now, do you?" Inoichi asked in a low voice, leaning forwards into Kabushi's space, "I suppose I wouldn't blame you too much for despising the village that vilified your brother,  _Kakashi's_  father, into suicide."

The words stung personally at the time-traveller's heart, because Kabushi knew all too well how horribly the villagers had treated Sakumo. But Kabushi also knew he couldn't show Inoichi that. He treaded carefully, "I admit what had happened to my brother infuriates me, but it's not something I can argue against. According to shinobi rules, Sakumo  _had_ done something unforgivable …" The silver-haired man pursed his lips under his navy blue mask as haunting ghosts of voices he'd overheard twenty-so years ago echoed through the back of his mind, "so I can't blame them too harshly. Even so, I agree completely with Sakumo's decision for saving his comrades. There is more to devotion to Konoha – or any village - than blindly following set rules. Especially with the lives of important comrades on the line."

"'Any village'?" Inoichi pulled out from Kabushi's speech, twisting words to his liking, "And just how many villages have you been to as a traveller, Kabushi? You're twenty-five? Thirty? You must have spent a majority of your time in various countries – perhaps a lover or two who you've devoted yourself to. Who you're willing to lie for? Willing to trick a nephew you've never seen until now for, for  _their_  sake? Important people - _important comrades_  - like them?"

Grey-blue eyes narrowed slightly. "I will not use Kakashi like that. I am loyal to Konoha,” Kabushi said simply, letting a bit of metallic hardness slip into his tone.

The blond crossed his arms, a smirk on his face, smug like he'd caught the Hatake. "But rules and orders are different things, and you deliberately disobeyed direct orders from the one you claim to plead absolute loyalty to. Tell me, what did you hope to gain by leaving your post?"

Kabushi paused and let himself ponder the question. This one wasn't hard to answer. "Assuagement," the man finally said.

For a second, Inoichi looked thoughtful before the expression morphed into contemplation. "Oh, you weren't leaving to leak information on our defensive strategy to the enemy?"

"I was told nothing but my own mission and what little that the Hokage told Minato-san while I was there. If I really was planning to leak information, all I would have been able to convey is incomplete and incompetent data." Kabushi's tone told clearly how useless he thought such information would be.

"Not a leak, huh?" the man repeated in disbelief, "So you say. But then what exactly? Can you account for your suspicious behaviour?"

"I panicked," Kabushi murmured, giving his interrogator a half-smile, stretching falsely across his face in a way that looked like he was pained by the confession. "I knew Kakashi was only just promoted, and I woried. I'm sure Kakashi is more than capable, but after being too late for my brother, I felt paranoid – I couldn't let that happen again; I don't want to  _ever_  be too late to help my last living relative ever again."

"And why was Narui with you as well?" The blond continued stoically, baring no concern to the Hatake's open discomfort.

"Because he knew how much Kakashi and Team Minato meant to me."

The man gave a calculative hum before tipping his head in a sharp nod. At once the door behind him open and two Anbus filed in silently, ending the interrogation so abruptly that it was most likely planned; it was a good way to throw the captive off balance before they got too comfortable. The two pulled Kabushi upwards by his cuffs, dragging him away as Inoichi sat unconcernedly, relaxed in his chair. Kabushi was halfway out the door when Inoichi's soft voice carried out from his spot. "I wonder if you're curious whether your student's responses mirror your own?" the blond said in a foreboding tone. Kabushi didn't know how much truth there was in that tone, or if it was mere psychological intimidation. But either way, he knew it was only a matter of time before they tried their intense methods on Naruto as well, if they hadn't already.

Kabushi hoped everything would go well.

* * *

 

 

Sitting in the cell was dreadfully dull. There was only so long Kabushi could drown himself in apprehension before the feeling eventually numbed into a throbbing pain that he could finally manageably ignore. It was a few days since his interrogation with the Yanamaka, and Inoichi clearly had no thoughts of letting Kabushi nor Naruto out anytime soon. The Hatake's days were spent in silence with no company other than the clank of metal bowls as they were deposited in front of him on occasional intervals.

So, Kabushi was left with nothing to do but sit and think, and reconsider the idea of actually being in his past like he had originally assumed – or at the very least reconsidered the idea of a linear timeline.

Days ago, back in front of the Konoha Gates, Kabushi had been too happy seeing Obito walking home on his own two feet to think about anything other than the exuberant rush of happiness that was warming his whole body. Now, Kabushi had the time to run a hand under his headband and feel the long jagged scar than ran down his left eye.

 It was still there. However that didn't make sense because this time around, Obito was still alive and young Kakashi shouldn't have this damned scar. Which meant that Kabushi, the older version of him, shouldn’t have it either … right?

How did this time-traveling business work?

Kabushi still had his Sharingan, and so did Obito. There shouldn't be three copies of the same eye. As much as Kabushi hated the conclusion that was slowing inching its way into his mind, the facts couldn't deny it.

This wasn't his past any longer.

Kabushi was interfering with – was bettering - the future of a  _different_  Kakashi, a different Obito, a different Minato and Rin, and a different Konoha. …or perhaps they hadn't been different until the point where Kabushi and Nauri appeared into their lives and split the time line into two diverging futures?

 Kabushi didn't know.

In any case, perhaps it  _was_  a good thing they weren't actually in their past. Kabushi didn't know if he could wrap his brain around the inconceivably confusing idea of time-travel paradoxes, but if this  _had_ been their past, then logically with it changed, there was the case that young Kakashi wouldn't have done the same things he'd done in the future and thus ultimately not taken Naruto to the rock, and therefore wouldn't have time-travelled in the first place.

What that meant to his current time-travelled body, Kabushi wasn't too certain, but he had an inkling that he and Naruto would've disappeared from this "past" already if a linear time line had been the case – and that would've been a distressing turn of events since they hadn't even gotten around to helping with the other major crises that were expected to occur.

But, even knowing all this, there was still a small creeping of jealousy that was clutching around Kabushi's heart at the unfairness of the whole thing – loathing the idea that whatever he or Naruto changed in this "past" would not affect their future at all. But Kabushi knew to suppress it, no matter how much it ached. It was woefully unfair, but a different Kakashi was still a Kakashi, a different Obito was still an Obito, and a different Konoha was still Konoha – at least that was what the time-traveller insistently reminded himself.

At the very least when Naruto and him returned back home – if they could … or even  _would_  (because who would willingly leave someplace where their precious people were still alive and happy?) – they would have an abundance of memories to last them; which was much, much more than what they had before this whole business began.

… and, well, it was better than nothing.

* * *

 

 

"He's good," was the first thing that came out of the Yamanaka's mouth when secretary ushered the man into the Hokage's office.

"I beg your pardon?"

Inoichi paused abruptly before dropping his head. "Apologies, Hokage-sama," the man corrected, realising in his haste he had not greeted his Village Leader.

The old man, however, merely shook his head. "No, proceed with your report."

With a low bow, Inoichi continued as requested. "Kabushi, I mean," the blond specified. "He's a cunning and experienced shinobi."

"Is that so?" Hiruzen steepled his fingers in front of his contemplating face, elbows resting on his wooden desk. His mind wandered over the events that had led to their two travellers' imprisonment.

When the mission had first started, Hiruzen has suspected  _something_  would happen. How could he not when the day before Kabushi stormed into his office with a face full of crazed desperation? That  _something_ came in the form of Kabushi and Narui abandoning their posts and fleeing towards the direction of Grass Village – where an important mission had been taking place.

And yet, after reported of this, Hiruzen still had no idea what the Hatake and his student's intentions were. The Hokage knew the two were no fools; they had to have known they were still being watched by Anbu - and especially so after that unusual pleading request Kabushi had shown (and been denied of) earlier. But despite that, they gave in to whatever urges that had inspired them, and hastily rushed off without a second thought.

So, when Kabushi was caught, the Hokage gave orders to lead them to a new post - one so daring close to where Kabushi needed to go, Hiruzen was certain the man would be crazy enough to take the chance, given his previous attitude towards the fact.

And yet, the man did nothing. This time, Kabushi and Narui had focused their whole energy into his orders instead, desperately working themselves to the bones, the Anbu in charge of watching them had recounted. For two days, the two travellers diligently completed their assigned tasks, ignoring and resisting the temptation the Hokage tried baiting them with.

As for the mission in Grass, both Minato and young Kakashi had completed their respective missions successfully. There had been minor problems, but they accomplished through them all the same.

This fact didn't help Kabushi's case, because the Hokage couldn't stop the idea that perhaps if Kabushi had made his way to Kusa like he had wanted to, the outcome of the mission would've been different (or at least that was the impression the Hokage had) – and what other sort of different was there other than the mission being marked as a failure instead of a success?

How much did Konoha really know about Kabushi or Narui?

As the Hokage was pondering this to himself, Inoichi was continuing his report without fail, recounting the separate interviews he had with both captives. "Narui was straight forward," the man started immediately, "and stubborn. He said what he knew, and refused to touch on the topics he didn't want to speak about, no matter what we threatened him with." The blond gave a short pause as he switched to the other man. "Kabushi on the other hand… On the surface, we obtain no additional facts of interest from Kabushi, but I could tell he was calculating the smoothness and speed he was answering my questions with. Quite professionally too."

The Hokage gave an acknowledging hum, a finger tapping on his lit pipe as he considered this. But Inoichi wasn't finished yet. "But it wasn't until I dismissed him that I realised."

The words caught the Hokage's attention. The old man leaned forwards, eyes fixed on his shinobi. "Recognised what, exactly?" he asked carefully, mind already running, ready to merge the new findings to come up with new explanations to explain the mysteries that were his new guests.

"Narui didn't quite have it yet," Inoichi said, "but Kabushi … there was a distinctive pattern in his pauses and the way he squirmed around my questions. I almost didn't notice because of how familiar it was; his technique – not completely, because I'm sure some of it was his own style developed over the years – but the base structure of it was exactly the same as those taught to our shinobi in Konoha." The blond paused for a second, before finishing confidently, even over the confusion in his voice, "and if I'm certain about anything, the man was  _instinctively_  using them."

The blond's declaration drew more unanswered questions, and added what seemed like even more unnecessary confusion to the unfinished riddle that shrouded over the two travellers. Yet there was a slight niggling sensation, ever-fleeting whenever he tried to grasp at it, at the back of the Hokage's mind, that was desperately trying to get his attention.

Inoichi continued on, "If you wish for me to continue interrogation them, I'm afraid working at Kabushi might be harder than we expected. It would be a lot easier to try to crack the boy first." Even as stoically as the blond said those words, there was an apologetic undertone to them that the Hokage could definitely pick out. If Konoha was known for anything, it was the kindness they looked after and brought up their children, and Narui, while under suspicion, had still been accepted as a member- as child - of Konoha.

Hiruzen shook his head. "Narui is a shinobi," the man said clearly, "The moment he accepted his headband, he accepted all of the dangers that path entailed." Not that the idea pleased the Hokage any more than it did for the blond. The old man pondered his choices on how to proceed. A little while later, Hiruzen took a slow puff of his pipe in a way that almost seemed like he was stalling for time as the old man stared to the side at the large pane windows in the Hokage office. Hiruzen sighed softly to himself before turning determinately towards his shinobi. "Inoichi, I give you permission to use your mind jutsu," he said.

The Head Interrogator in front of the old man paused for a mere second. "If that is your command."

"It is," Hiruzen nodded in finality. "These two clearly are not willing to divulge any more information willingly. Narui may crack eventually if given more time to work on him, but…" But Hiruzen didn't want to break the cheerful blond into a mess of shattered shards. The boy would heal in due time, but Hiruzen would never forgive himself if whatever information they had learned in the meantime lead nowhere but towards their innocence. Forcing their way into Narui and Kabushi's minds were a violation of privacy, that was for certain, but it was better than letting them suffer in the capable hands of the Torture and Interrogation Squad for months more (and Hiruzen was certain it  _would_  take that long, taking into account how tight-lipped the two were).

"I understand," Inoichi bowed, "When shall I perform my jutsu?"

"Immediately."

* * *

 

 

Kabushi didn't know how many days had passed since he'd been forced to sit in the ever-dimly lit cell he was held in. His mental clock told him it was likely starting on the fourth day, but without a window or natural sunlight, it was merely guesswork on his part.

Kabushi didn't even know if he could speculate how much longer they would keep him and Naruto in these cells. It was clearly not over yet. Kabushi was starting to ponder if perhaps telling them the truth, no matter how much more illogical it sounded than the lies he had planned, was the only way the T and I unit would let them go. Kabushi didn't want to spend any longer imprisoned in the dark, without a clue as to how Naruto was doing. And not to mention, they, with all their knowledge of the future (or should Kabushi be calling it a "likely" future now since things weren't completely the same anymore?), could get nothing done locked up, after all.

Kabushi eyes suddenly darted towards the entrance of the holding cell, hearing vibrating echoes of footsteps shuffling towards him. The man steeled himself, realising he was going to be led to yet another interrogation. The time-traveller raised his head to look up from the sitting position he was in to meet the eyes of the new arrival, only to freeze momentarily when his grey-blue eye was greeted with bright sunshine blond hair instead of the expected cold ceramic mask.

Instinctively, from his ingrained habits, Kabushi leaped up from his seat to military attention.

Cerulean eyes bore steadily on him. "Kabushi," Minato greeted softly, a tired drag in his tone.

"Minato-san," Kabushi said. The time-traveller discreetly shifted his weight, moving to stand into a less strict posture, trying to ignore the sense of unease building inside as his former sensei kept quiet. "Why are you here?" Kabushi finally asked.

The blond never let go of his gaze on the Hatake, his eyes silently begging the Hatake to obey. "Kabushi," the man began, "I don't know why you're doing this, but please work with Inoichi," he said without any preamble.

Kabushi blinked. "I am."

Blond eyebrows deepened into an almost irritated frown. "No you're not. Why else do you think they're still insisting to keep you locked up? Do not underestimate our interrogation squad. I know you two would never do anything against this village, I know it. But you and Narui  _are_  hiding something and surely if it isn't anything harmful to Konoha, can't you tell us?"

"I would  _never_  harm the village."

"I know. I don't want to see you like this." Minato stared expectingly at the other man, but Kabushi continued refusing to speak of it.

The blond sigh, resisting to urge to run a hand anxiously through his hair in exasperation. Instead, the man switched tracks, "Do you know how much this whole thing has been affecting Kakashi? He's shutting himself off from everyone, much like how he was when his father first died. He feels betrayed by you – by family, yet again."

Kabushi clenched his fists by his sides, feeling guilt crawl up his stomach. Minato would never know how much his words actually weighed down on Kabushi, never realising that Kabushi knew  _exactly_  how little Kakashi must be feeling.

"And they're not just interrogating you. Narui's in this too, trying to keeping back whatever it is you're trying to keep a secret. The poor boy will be scarred if you abandon him to our head interrogator so long. Don't do this to Narui!"

Kabushi knew that too. Kabushi had already been dreading leaving Naruto all alone for so long, and Minato pointing out the obvious didn't make it any better. "Don't you  _dare_  threaten about my student to get to me," Kabushi hiss, stress making him spill his anger more visibly than he had intended. Something about having his father figure looking down on him with such disappointment pained Kabushi a hundred burning needles worse than anything Inoichi could ever possibly do.

Minato's spine stiffened before the man softened his posture into something placating. "I'm not," Minato murmured out gently. Lines creased the man's face as the blond leaned forwards, almost looming over Kabushi despite being separated by the iron bars of the cell. It was a gesture that one would think was frightening, but with the two, Minato's stance eclipsing over Kabushi was more one of comfort, like standing protectively over an agitated child. "Please, Kabushi. I'm worried for him. I'm worried for Kakashi. I'm worried for  _you_. Just tell them everything, please." Hands tightened by Minato's sides as if unsure of what to do, as the man stared pleadingly into the cell. "What is there to lose?" the blond as rhetorically, watching the Hatake stare past him in a distanced gaze, "It's not like things can get any worse."

And those were probably not the best words to use, for at that exact moment, a scream echoed through the air. Angry red chakra curled, lashing into the corridors, the cell, and everything around, like a toxic flood. The chakra howled out, bursting with violent anger, whipping through the building like nine tails of the Kyuubi himself.

It was thick and ominous, strangling and chocking the breaths out of the two of them like a thick air of mustard gas. It was evil, and oh-so familiar, Kabushi couldn't hold back his shudder. And Kabushi wasn't the only one; both men recognised it immediately.

"Kushina?" Minato whispered out loud, more to himself than anything thing else, fear engulfing his tone.

 _No,_  Kabushi thought to himself. It wasn't, but Minato was close. And honestly, "I think things just got worse," he muttered.  _Much, much worse._


	10. Uzumaki Naruto

Inoichi hadn't expected this. Heck, no one could've expected it.

There was a shrilling ring inside his head. Inoichi tried to shake it off, but his head felt heavy and unyielding, refusing to move. Underneath that ringing, his skull throbbed red hot poundings of pain. Inoichi could feel the cool concrete of the ground below his legs. His head, on the other hand, was smashed uncomfortably on the wall, where Inoichi could only dimly remember being thrown back into by a sudden pulse of chakra. Everything else was a blur.

"Yamanka-san. Yamanka-san."

The blond eventually managed to force his eyes open to the incessant voice. Above him stood a Tiger-masked Anbu, watching him carefully. Two other Anbu, Jackalope and Bear, stood behind Tiger, their attention focused on the kid slumped limply on the solitary wooden chair in the center of the room.

Immediately memories came rushing back to Inoichi.

Systematically pushing aside the soreness he felt, Inoichi slipped into working mode. "I take it you were alerted by that chakra?" he questioned the Anbu, trying to organise what had occurred into some sort of order in his mind.

At the Anbu's subtle nod, Inoichi gave another glance back at the kid, Narui, still unconscious on the chair.

The other two Anbu had been approaching Narui while Inoichi was talking to Tiger. They circled the boy in tense movements, assessing the problem, muscles taut and ready for anything.

Sporadic chakra rippled, so thick and intense Inoichi swore he could literally see it lashing out in a wave of crimson red, licked at their senses. It held something so vile it prickled his skin from the back of his spine all the way down to his toes.

It was horrible, yes, but during the second Inoichi had been thrown back into the wall, Inoichi vaguely recalled it to be worse. There had been the feel of unadulterated maliciousness underneath that chakra – a maliciousness that wasn't present anymore. In other words, this present pulsing was just the tip of the ice burg – nothing more than a warning.

The approaching Anbu clearly took no heed of this warning.

" _Don't_  –" Inoichi began, as one of the Anbu cautiously reached out towards the boy.

But his shout was too late. The moment the tip of the Bear's fingers touched the boy's bare skin, Narui lurched in his seat. The boy's head flung back, eyes wrenched wide open up to the ceiling, unseeing. His back arched into a painful curve as screams involuntarily tore from his mouth.

If Inoichi had speculated the chakra had seemed red, he was as sure as could be now. It  _was_  red. It was a fierily red that scorched the surface of everything around him, forcing everyone back with an intense heat that burned with the scent of something angry and vengeful.

In fact, the red seemed to be seeping into the boy's eyes. What Inoich once noted were cerulean blue eyes seemed a murky violet colour now, mixed in like seeping pools of blood.

The three Anbu had immediately leapt into action the moment Narui so as much twitched. They were now in a loose circle around Narui, as close as they could stand by the kid without being attacked by the chakra which now seemed to cocoon around the boy. Bear was slowly flexing his fingers, hand likely still stinging from where the chakra had suddenly leaped out at him like a snap of a whip.

If it weren't for the fact that Narui seemed to be harmed the most by this whole thing, and the fact that he clearly had no control over it, Inoichi would've thought it was an attack from the kid.

As it was, Inoichi could only hope they could stop it before Narui could scream himself hoarse, or the surging red chakra could ruin the boy's chakra channels for good. To be honest, if he ignored the fact that Narui might be a possible threat to Konoha, he actually quite liked that cheerful, boastful blond.

"What is going on here?" a voice demanded by the door of the interrogation room.

Inoichi turned, dropping his head into a quick nod that served as his greeting. "Hokage-sama," Inoichi said, but it was clear his attention was more on the immediate potential danger than the man himself.

Hiruzen strolled cautiously into the room, eyes taking in everything with a single glance. The Hokage had another Anbu, a Hawk mask this time, escorting half a step in front of him and more than likely ready to take a hit for the Hokage should anything attack. Inoichi was also certain he was quite anxious at the Hokage being in this close proximity of the unknown danger.

"What is going on here?" the man repeated calmly, like an anchor in the torrent they were thrown in. His presence was soothing, but it didn't help Inoichi's understanding of the situation at hand. He still didn't have much of an idea, and nothing he could confidently share with the Hokage.

Thankfully, one person knew. Or rather, one person had more of a clue than anyone else – but still ignorant to the overall picture.

" _The Kyuubi."_

Heads turned towards the door at the female voice.

"I thought I had ordered my Anbu to prevent anyone from entering the building?" the Hokage said, somewhat pointedly at Hawk.

"I was already inside – I was going to talk with Minato about Kabushi and Narui," the woman, Kushina, replied, quite fearfully and breathily, but her tone wasn't directed at the Hokage's words. It was obviously towards what she had identified as the Kyuubi's chakra.

It wasn't a strictly kept secret that Kushina was the jinchuuriki of the nine-tailed beast, but nor was it a publicly advertised fact. Inoichi looked confused for a second before the thought dawned on him, and the Hokage's words only confirmed his suspicion.

"How can he be releasing the Kyuubi's chakra when you are guarding the nine-tails?"

Kushina's eyebrow pushed together into a worried frown. "I don't know," she said quietly, shaking her head. Unconsciously, the woman's hand crept to her midsection, arms wrapping around her body as if trying to reassure herself the Kyuubi was still within. "I really don't know."

Kushina's answer was less than satisfactory, but it was a lot more helpful than what anyone else could offer. With Kushina's words in mind, slowly, new ideas churned in their minds.

Tiger slowly stepped away from his position, turning towards the woman. "Uzumaki-san," the Anbu said respectfully, "are you able to approach the boy?" Or more specifically, with the similar Kyuubi chakra resonating inside of her as well, would that keep her safe if she neared him?

There was a pause as Kushina regarded the man's question thoughtfully. She'd heard what had happened to the Anbu when they unceremoniously reached out towards Narui.

"Is it possible, Kushina?" the Hokage questioned directly.

Kushina shifted in anxiety, unable to keep still. She knew her own impulsive nature, and didn't want to rush into action without at least deliberating the facts. But really, what facts? They didn't know anything yet.

"I can try," Kushina finally agreed, if only so that they would manage to learn something new. With a nod at the Third, Kushina cautiously inched towards Narui.

Kushina winced sympathetically for the boy, hearing the screams tearing from his throat grow louder and more guttural the closer she neared. Eventually, she made her way to where the three Anbu stood.

Something deep, deep inside of her seemed to tug wildly, like mammoth butterflies desperately trying to make their way out. The woman wondered for a second if it was the Kyuubi inside of her that was urging her need to move forwards. But if that was the case, was advancing really the best course of action?

The redhead briefly turned her head back to where the others were waiting. No one else seemed to pick up on anything. So, with a deep breath, Kushina continued to stride forward. With no fanfare, Kushina quickly advanced across the mark where Tiger, Jackalope, and Bear had not been able to pass.

For a second, all was well.

And then it all went wrong.

Kushina didn't think she would be able to feel it, but the moment Narui's Kyuubi-like chakra touched her, it reacted. It seemed to recognise her, feel her,  _hate_  her. Kushina stumbled back as the chakra seemed to dart towards her body, and what felt like tendrils wrapping, stabbing, and hauling her forwards. Kushina bent into a curl, both arms coiled around her body, as though she could physically stop the connection.

Her entire body felt like it was burning from inside out. Her chakra felt like it was dying to leap out from her chakra channels and latch onto and harmonize with the energy Narui was emitting.

Kushina staggered in spot, sweat trickling down the sides of her face.

" _Get out of there,"_  Inoichi roared from outside.

Kushina tried to nod as she stumbled her way back behind the three Anbu. And yet, even behind them, whatever had latched onto her, wouldn't let go. The Kyuubi inside her felt like he was thrashing from where he was chained up. Her ears rang from his ferocious, thundering voice, insisting her to go back, trying to rip off her chakra chains and break free.

She couldn't let that happen.

"Are you fine?" Hiruzen asked by her side.

Kushina gave a shaky nod, casting her mind away from the pain, pretending it wasn't hurting as much as it did. She was a professional kunoichi; she could deal with this. "Yes sir," she said. "But I don't think approaching Narui was my best idea," Kushina added in a weak, hollow laugh.

The Hokage nodded with a consoling, worried half-smile, before he turned towards his Anbu to regroup and re-strategize. They didn't get far when they were interrupted once more.

" _Kushina_!" the cry came between huffing breaths.

Kushina turned just as the rest of the shinobi present had, not even surprised at the sight of the arriving blond fearfully calling her name. "Minato," the woman replied, a faint smile on her lips. She had no doubts Minato recognised what she had in the chakra. He'd likely rushed all the way here to her aid, thinking it was her.

"Hokage-sama. Yamanaka-san," Minato acknowledged from where he had halted before the door way. The blond looked more than ready to dash to Kushina's side, but he was visibly holding himself back, knowing better than to mindlessly rush into an unknown situation. "You're not hurt, are you, Kushina?" Minato pressed, panic held tight as he surveying the scene.

"I'm fine."

The man cast a worried gaze over to where the Anbu surrounded the howling Narui."But this chakra - I mean, isn't all this chakra from the Kyuubi?"  _The Kyuubi who should be locked up inside you?_  Minato didn't say, half-fearful of the answer he would get if he asked. The blond lingered on Narui's painful form. "What is going on here?"

"It seems there is more to young Narui than we initially assumed," the Hokage answered for the two of them.

From the corner of his eye, Minato spied Inoichi leaning heavily against the concrete wall of the interrogation cell, unconsciously rubbing the back of his skull. Minato knew about the decision to dive into the young traveller's mind with the Yamanaka arts, and seeing Inoichi backed away with a head wound and Narui going crazy in the middle of the room, he could deduce something went wrong.

There was a circular gradient of oppressed air around Narui, most concentrated where the boy sat. It heavy with chakra much too alike to the Kyuubi's own for anyone to feel comfortable standing so nearby. "Is this a defensive mechanism?" Minato wondered quietly, slowing stepping inside.

The Hokage halted the man when he was by his side, explaining how closing in had only previously aggravated the boy.

Inoichi pushed himself off the wall and joined them. "Actually, we've been considering that idea," the man explained, still nursing the back of his skull, "it could have been something I triggered by mistake," the man continued slowly. "There was a sealed cage inside Narui's mind. When I pulled back the seal to get a better look at it, there was what looked like a lock underneath. I only touched it briefly, and then I was knocked back into reality before I knew it, with the boy screaming his head off."

Minato frowned thoughtfully, bothered at Inoichi's ignorance and decision to distrub a seal, no matter how benign it looked. Kushina had no qualms scowling visibly at the other man. "You never told me that," Kushina said in complaint.

Kushina leaned closer towards Narui, eyes squinting as she tried to spy the seal the man spoke of. Even if what Inoichi had seen was in Narui's mind, there was a chance it had been a manifestation of something drawn on the outside, physical body itself.

"You were within earshot when I was explaining it," Inoichi responded, before shaking his head, "Admittedly you seem to be doing worse the longer you spend in here. Are you sure you don't want to leave? I don't think this chakra is responding well with you."

"I'm fine," Kushina said dismissively, "What did the seal look like?" she urged instead, mind already whirling at the implications for a seal drawn on such a young kid.

"It-" Inoichi casted his mind back, recalling nothing clearer than a blur, "I'm not too certain. The paper above had the word 'seal' written on it. I can't clearly remember underneath; I didn't get a good look at it." The blond rubbed his temples and closed his eyes, as though that would help. "I think it was a swirl, but I can remember anything more than that."

"A swirl," Kushina parroted in mumbles to herself, "That's not helpful. Swirls are used for so many things … but I suppose if it's on a cage like you said -"

"A containment seal," Minato finished, mind following the same track as Kushina. "The question is did you release it? And what was sealed in Narui in the first place, and why?"

Kushina shifted uncomfortably. If there truly was something sealed within Narui and it was responding so violently with the Kyuubi inside of her, Kushina feared it was another tailed beast. But still, that didn't explain why it felt so strongly of the Kyuubi himself.

"I only touched it," Inoichi defended frantically to Minato's words. His eyes widen from what he was hearing. His knowledge in fuinjutsu was limited, if at all useful, but surely a touch couldn't have that much of an effect? "If we manage to stop Narui from expelling this chakra, I can get in his mind again and try to stick the seal back on more firmly," Inoichi suggested wildly.

"No, fuinjutsu is more complicated than that," Minato disagreed, and he didn't need to tell Inoichi how unsafe that was. No one could be certain Inoichi wouldn't get trapped inside Narui's mind in his next visit. "Hmmm, I believe there should be seal somewhere on his physical body as well – as long as we can find that, we can work on it without entering his consciousness anymore."

"On the torso," Kushina interrupted quickly, "If it's a containment seal, they're normally drawn somewhere on the stomach or back."

"To allow for a larger, more complex, and thus safer seal to be erected," Minato finished with an agreeing nod.

"However, as helpful as that may be, it poses no help if we are unable to approach the boy," Hiruzen pointed out, watching as Anbu Tiger, Jackalope, and Bear were still unable to move a step closer, nor get the boy's dazed attention.

There was a collective silence as the group considered their choices.

And then Kushina collapsed onto the floor.

"Kushina!" Minato called out, making his way over to the woman.

The Uzumaki held up a hand. "Stop," she said hoarsely, pulling herself up to a sitting position with a shaking arm. Around her, the air seemed dyed red, much like around the still-moaning Narui. "The Kyuubi's thrashing around inside. He wants out - it's so hard keeping him chained down." The Kyuubi's chakra was leaking out around Kushina, trying desperately to find its way back to the power source that was Narui. "Sorry, I thought I could handle it, but  _it hurts_ …"

"We need to get you out of here."

Kushina gave the man a bitter smile, looking like she'd already considered that option herself. "No, distance won't help. The Kyuubi knows that's there," she said, pointing over to Narui, "Going farther away won't make him stop."

Minato fretted in place, cerulean eyes flickering to and fro in an attempt to find any probable resolutions. The hardest part was that Minato  _did_  have a sudden epiphany, but he wasn't sure how certain he was of the chance it would work, or if it would even be approved of in the first place.

Minato tried anyways. "Could Kabushi help?" Minato asked, taking quick, tentative glances at the Hokage.

It was Inoichi who answered him. "I have yet to finish interrogating him. As trustworthy as you may think he may be, he is still officially classified as a potential threat."

"What if he  _does_  have the solution? Are we going to ignore that possibility?" Minato argued back.

"We still cannot forget that this might be a plan of theirs. How certain are you  _this_  is not something the man prepared for this exact purpose?"

"If it is, I'll take care of Kabushi myself," Kushina growled out, cutting into the dispute, between her own laboured breaths, "What kind of person makes a boy suffer so much for the sake of their own selfishness? Narui is hurting, and it better not be because of some stupid plan to attack our village."

Inoichi pressed his lip into a thin line. "Well, I admit, there is a chance the man didn't have any idea something was sealed up inside his charge in the first place," Inoichi added, partly in order to placate the woman.

Minato shook his head at Inoichi's suggestion. "No, Kabushi knows."

Minato recalled when he first felt what he had initially assumed to be Kushina's Kyuubi. He'd panicked and had been ready to sprint towards where he felt the flow of chakra was pouring out from, only to be stopped by Kabushi's plead.

"Wait!" Kabushi had cried desperately, sounding much too scared and agitated at the flushing chakra. "Let me come with you, please."

Minato hadn't let himself dwell in the man's words, dismissing him without another thought. He was too worried for Kushina to let it bother him. "Nothing's going to happen, don't worry. I'll be back," were Minato's words then. In the quick sweep Minato had taken to glance over at Kubushi before he dashed off, he had seen fear in the other man's eye.

Minato had assumed the Hatake had been scared for his own life, scared that he was defenceless and stuck locked up in a cell while there was some unknown threat out there. But now, knowing Kushina wasn't behind that chakra flux, perhaps Kabushi had actually been scared for Narui's sake, because Kabushi had  _known_  that wave of chakra had originated from the kid.

"Kabushi could be our only hope. We can't get close to Narui, and maybe Kabushi can't either, but he  _can_ call back Narui's conscious. In the panicked state Narui is in, a familiar voice might be the only thing that can," Minato reasoned hastily. "Nauri could likely be able to repress it once he realises what's happening. And if not, he'll at least have a chance to attempt to do so."

Inoichi exchanged a glance with the Hokage, letting the old man see his wary. Hiruzen rubbed his chin. "If Kabushi had indeed planned this, then that is a chance I will have to take." Of course, the fact that Kabushi was to be brought into a room with three Jounin, four Anbu, and a Kage, significantly lowered his chances of succeeding in any plot he may or may not have had schemed. "I cannot stand to watch the young man tortured by his own chakra any longer. Hawk," Hiruzen ordered, pulling out the Anbu closest to him, "fetch Kabushi."

"Yes, Hokage-sama."

* * *

 

Kabushi was equal parts frantic and livid.

Out there, beyond this dingy cell of his, he could feel the roaring of the Kyuubi's anger, manifesting as a dense flame of chakra off in the distance. Kabushi had no doubt this was Naruto's Kyuubi. If Kakashi knew anything about the Yamanaka's interrogation methods, it was that his clan's famed jutsu tended to play a role in it sooner or later. Kabushi could easily deduce what a curious Yamanaka inside Naruto's mind would lead to, and he had no doubts he wasn't mistaken.

Somehow, the man managed to upset the seal which held the Kyuubi captive. Perhaps he hadn't just quite  _released_  the Kyuubi, but he had clearly managed to give the demon so much more control inside Naruto than it normally had. Minor internal disruptions had such a greater effect than external disturbances, and that was what made Inoichi's mind jutsu so dangerous – especially for a jinchuuriki.

Minato had rushed off ages ago, the moment he also felt the sting of the Kyuubi's energy. Despite Kabushi's begs, the blond felt no need to bring him along, and Kabushi supposed he couldn't blame his sensei because he  _was_  under suspicion after all. But that didn't mean Kabushi couldn't feel outraged at Minato's decision which left him so utterly helpless for his tormented student.

He was stuck inside solid iron bars for much, much too long, before Kabushi's eye narrow at the feeling of another shinobi nearing. Instantaneously an Anbu appeared, Hawk mask adorned on his face.

Kabushi pulled himself up from where he had been leaning heavily on the cell bars. He let his arms hang limply at his side, trying to seem as harmless as he could.

There were no pleasantries from the Anbu, not that Kabushi had expected it, even without the Kyuubi's chakra still blaring in their peripheral senses. Hawk wasted no time, drilling straight to the point. "Can you do something about it?" he demanded, and there was no ambiguousness about what ' _it_ ' was.

"Yes," Kabushi answered unhesitantly. His confidence was a lie, but anything that helped him reach Naruto so much sooner, he would lie about in a heartbeat.

Hawk studied him raptly, and eventually had to nod when he detected no malicious intent in Kabushi's words. "Very well then," the Anbu said, unlocking his cell, "let us proceed."

Kabushi knew better than to bolt to his student the moment his jail cell swung open. He patiently allowed the Anbu to slip chakra-subduing cuffs around his wrists before the man led him cautiously out into the hallway and down to the room Naruto was situated in.

It was a painfully agonisingly slow journey, but Kabushi bore it. It was better than doing something that would make the Anbu reconsider freeing him from that cell.

What greeted the two of them when they finally reached the interrogation room, was the scene the Anbu had left from. Three Anbu still stood around Narui. Huddled to the side, speaking theories and possibilities stood the Hokage and Inoichi. Minato kneel on the floor where Kushina had staggered down to, supporting her, and rubbing soothing circles on her back. And all around them, Naruto's screams echoed in the chamber, hoarse and painful, as red chakra coursed through his body.

"Hokage-sama, I have brought him," the Anbu spoke with Kabushi in toll.

"Ah, Kabushi," the old man said in an unflappable calmness one wouldn't expect in this kind of situation. Still, Kabushi knew better than to think Hiruzen wasn't apprehensive. "You have been informed of what has happened?"

"Partially," Kabushi acknowledge. There was movement beside the Hokage, and Kabushi shifted as he locked on onto Inoichi moving up beside them. Kabushi's eyes narrowed. "You should have known better than to meddle with something you have no knowledge in," he said in a low, dangerous voice.

"We should have been made aware of this lurking danger in the first place," Inoichi countered.

"Arguments can wait," Minato proposed, still crouched by Kushina, "Can you do anything for Narui, Kabushi?" he questioned bluntly when Kabushi's attention was turned onto him.

It took a second for Kabushi's single eye to move from the sight of the blond to the feverish face of Kushina beside him. "Kushina-san…" Kabushi murmured worriedly.

"She's not responding well," was the only vague answer Minato was willing to give, not that Kabushi expected anything more. Either way, knowing what was sealed inside both Naruto and Kushina, Kabushi had a fair idea what was going on. The Kyuubi chakra leaking out from Naruto like a broken dam was the cause of this. "Can you wake Narui up?" Minato demanded relentlessly.

Kakashi's mind churned a mile a minute. If he could get Naruto to wake and become aware of what was going on, the boy could likely repair the damage on his own. He knew Jiraiya taught the kid everything he knew about his seal, or rather, everything he knew about sealing, period. Whatever Inoichi had done had left the seal unstable, perhaps equivalent to Gaara's seal when he still had the one-tail in him, giving the demon too much power over the body when the host was unconscious.

Kabushi turned back towards Naruto with a soundless nod, inching as close as he could get to the boy. Like the others, Kabushi could not approach Narui as close as he would've liked.

He had to resort to calling out to the boy instead. "Narui! Narui," Kabushi barked out repeatedly, voice gaining in volume every other cry. He wished he could approach the boy and shake him awake - that always seemed the best way to wake the boy up in missions – but the Kyuubi's chakra clearly didn't want that happening. "Narui! Wake up!"

Naruto didn't answer. He probably didn't even realise Kabushi was calling for him because that wasn't his name, and no matter how often it'd been used over the months, the boy still never quite gotten the hang of it.

Kabushi moved his mouth desperately wanting so badly to shout out the name that Naruto  _would_ respond to, but faltered whenever he remembered the other men around him.

But this was him being selfish again, wasn't it? He'd already dragged Naruto through more than enough. Here Naruto was, slumped in his seat, in pain from the Kyuubi's chakra ripping through his body, and Kabushi had to think about his options?

"Naru-  _Naruto_!"

Kabushi could feel the others' eyes narrowing at the new title, but he paid them no heed.

"Naruto!" Kabushi demanded, shouting out the boy's name.

If only just slightly, his voice seemed to reach the blond. "… don't want… g'away…" Naruto murmured out softly in a cracking voice.

It proved Naruto wasn't completely gone, but the boy was far from lucid. He seemed on the verge of slipping away once more without a moment's notice. "Naruto," Kabushi tried insistently. All Kabushi received were moans this time.

Naruto was getting accustomed to his calls now, quickly categorising Kabushi as background noise. It was frustrating, but what else could he say to get Naruto to focus? What would definitely get the boy's attention?

"Naruto …  _UZUMAKI NARUTO!_ " Kabushi finally snapped, fierce command in his tone, channeling everything he knew about a certain brunette of a school teacher than Naruto could never disobey.

Kushina jumped, large, confused eyes staring straight at him.

Naruto slipped onto the ground from his chair, jolted by the impact just as harshly as the effect his full name had cause. "Wha …?" he murmured murkily back before Kushina could respond. "Wasn' me se'sei … was Ko'maru…" he answered, somewhat deliriously.

Kabushi tried not to pay attention to the bewildered and suspicious gazes he was receiving. "Stay with me, Naruto," Kakashi urged.

Naruto moaned. "'ka'shi sensei?" he said in a faltering slur, "'tho't 'ruka …"

"Are you going to disobey me because I'm not Iruka?" Kabushi challenged, to which Naruto moaned out a low ' _nooo'_ , or maybe he just indiscriminately moaned.

The Kyuubi's chakra fluctuated, rippling like a waving veil between them. "Naruto," Kabushi said in perfectly controlled calmness, "Your seal was tampered. Can you-"

"Shh..."

"Naruto," Kabushi said warningly. The boy was prone to cutting him off and doing his own thing, but now was not the time. He needed the boy to remember what happened.

"'m try'n …"

"It's-"

"Yoe're too loud, 'm try'n to con'entrate."

Kabushi slipped into silence, watching the boy scrunch up his forehead in concentration. He watched in worry as Naruto jerked in place, as if trying to fight against nodding off into oblivion once more. "Naru-"

"Shut up!" Naruto snapped, "I'm trying already! Stop interrupting, I'm trying to fix it! There's only so much I can do! I'm trying my best, what more do you want? I'm not a genius, I know! I'm not Sasuke, I'm not my dad, I'm not you! I'm doing my best with what I know!" the boy screamed out in a maelstrom of stress, frustration, and pain, while the evils of the Kyuubi urged on his anger.

Kabushi's eye lingered on his students, eyeing the panting mass Naruto was, a sheen of sweat covering his limp form. "I know," Kakashi said softly, lovingly. He never meant otherwise – he only wanted Naruto alert so he could fight this battle easier.

Naruto bit his lips in guilt, but didn't say another word. Beneath his partially risen shirt, the hint of a seal bloomed into place on his bare stomach – one that had Kushina startled vigilant even with the minimal design she could see.

Kabushi focused on the slowly decreasing perimeter that the Anbu were keeping track of, slowly edging nearer and nearer to Naruto as the danger of the chakra receded. Kabushi reached out with his cuffed hands when the red chakra inched closer back into the boy, ignoring blistering hands as he placed a comforting pat onto Naruto head. Naruto grinned weakly beneath his teary crusted face as the warm glows of blue chakra replaced the red, tinged with the slightest of yellow.

"Sorry," the boy whispered, leaning onto Kabushi, seemingly unable to hold himself up any longer.

"It wasn't your fault," Kabushi consoled.

"I yelled at you."

"Well,  _that_ might have been your fault, but I forgive you," Kabushi said teasingly.

Naruto nodded into his chest, drifting off to sleep from chakra depravation. Around them the Anbu had taken a defensive stance, watching their next actions diligently, warily, as if expecting Naruto's chakra to misbehave suddenly once more. Kabushi had more faith in Naruto's abilities than to worry about that.

"I think the Hospital might be the best place for Narui –  _Naruto_  – for now?" the Hokage said as the Anbu shifted aside ever-so slightly until the man was only barely seen from between their protective formation.

"I'm not leaving Naruto," Kabushi said defiantly, clutching his student the best he could around his cuffs.

"I was not planning otherwise," Hiruzen agreed, perhaps because he realized should something happen to Naruto once more, Kabushi would be the best one to stop it. Or perhaps because he saw the unadulterated fright Kabushi had tried to hide when he'd first saw Naruto, which still lingered in the depths of his eyes.

"Then I concede to that, Hokage-sama."

Kushina pulled herself up shakily, focused on the blond in Kabushi's hands. "Wait, I'm coming too. I know the most about seals – I'll check on his," the woman explained needlessly, "to make sure he's really alright."

"That is acceptable," the Hokage nodded, "Please have the nurses check over yourself as well, Kushina." The redhead agreed absentmindedly at his words. The Hokage turned towards the two travellers once more. "The Anbu will escort you," he said.

It was clear as day that the Anbu would also be guarding them throughout their stay in the Hospital, but that didn't need to be said out loud.

* * *

 

It was a few hours after the whole ordeal with Naruto when the three jounin who had been present found themselves summoned to the Hokage's office.

"What is your opinion of this, Kushina?" Hiruzen asked, turning to the redhead of the group who had arrived only moments earlier, finally back from the Hospital. If Kabushi's shout of " _Uzumaki_ " had not sparked any realizations, then at the very least the long time Kushina had spent looking over Narui's seal would've given her some ideas on where to begin.

Uncharacteristically, Kushina rocked on her heels, feeling hesitant to word her dismal thoughts. She didn't know how to express what she was thinking without it sounding like nonsense. Kushina never claimed to be overly intelligent – not like the genius who were Minato or Kakashi – but she could always come up with sound deductions. Yet, in this case, every logical conclusion seemed to suggest something almost impossible.

"Kabushi called Na- _Naruto_  an Uzumaki," Minato prodded, giving the woman an opening to start.

It took a second, but Kushina took it. "The Uzumaki clan was extensive when the Land of Whirlpool still existed," the woman began, "I don't recall ever hearing of a Naruto, but then again, considering his age, he had to have been born after the decimation of our village. I'm not sure where everyone disappeared off to, so for all I know, he could be an Uzumaki. We've scattered and went into hiding throughout the whole nation, after all."

Hiruzen nodded, but it seemed he'd considered this point already as well. "In other words, we have no possibility to confirm his identity."

Kushina shook her head hesitantly.

Hands clutched around her stomach, Kushina looked down, as if burning the image of the seal she had seen on Naruto onto herself. "That Naruto ... the containment seal on his stomach ... it's an Uzumaki seal," Kushina said slowly. She paused and cocked her head thoughtfully, rubbing her chin as she did so. "Well, not exactly."

The Hokage hummed encouragingly, and the woman continued. "It certainly had the foundations of an Uzumaki seal, but it wasn't entirely so. It's like a fusion of sealing techniques." The woman wet her lips, giving herself time to think, "As for whether or not the one who put it on Naruto was an Uzumaki - we don't teach our sealing arts to just anybody. And with the destruction of Whirlpool, all information, books and scrolls, are long gone. There's only a few of us who still know these family arts, so..."

"Then you are convinced Naruto is or knows an Uzumaki."

"Or related to one, one way or another," Kushina corrected. "Like I said, this is a family art. Even with our dwindling numbers, we won't teach it to just anyone."

The woman let the group digest that information as she gave a cheery shrug, lightening the mood with a grin. "You know, Naruto really looks like Minato. Maybe one of his parents' related to him? Minato's an orphan after all?" Kushina grinned, nudging the blond with her elbow. "That'll be so cool. He'd be related to the both of us then."

Minato shot Kushina a fond little smile, thinking of the pain this woman had been forced to bear just by being next to the boy, and here she was as cheerful as ever – as forced as some of that cheeriness may be. That woman was resilient, and that what he loved most about her. "What about what-ever-it-was that's sealed inside of Naruto?" Minato question, because as much as he loved Kushina, he also knew better than to let her stray off topic.

There really wasn't much Kushina could say. "Kabushi couldn't tell me much about it," the woman admitted, thinking back to her brief visit to Konoha Hospital, where she had tried to pull answers from the Hatake. "The only thing he was willing to admit was that they'd been lying about Naruto's name. He's denying all knowledge of details regarding to how the thing got sealed inside Naruto, or even what it is."

Failing to get what she wanted from the man, Kushina fell back on her own memories of the situation. "That chakra spilling out from the thing in Naruto's stomach - it reminded you of the Kyuubi, didn't it?" Kushina confirmed, directing her question to everyone present. At the nods she received Kushina shook her head. "The thing is, I'm very familiar with the Kyuubi's chakra, and I can only say I'm certain it  _was_  the Kyuubi," the redhead began. And here was when things stopped making sense. "It  _was_  the Kyuubi, and it also  _wasn't."_

Kushina continued talking, seeing the confused expressions sent her way. "It felt like the kyuubi, but ... muted," the kunoichi said, choosing her words carefully, brows furrowed. "Kind of like it was … less," the woman tried again, trying and still failing to find the best description.

"Is it another tailed beast?" Inoichi proposed. "If it felt less, then maybe it the eight-tail, or seven-tail?"

"It could, however, we know the locations of the other tailed demons," the Hokage interrupted. Unless, of course, the other countries were lying about their known jinchuuriki. And if they were, what was the strategic value of dropping another one off in Konoha, especially if Naruto was nowhere near the level one would expect for a trained weapon deployed to decimate their village?

Kushina, on her part, shook her head immediately to Inoichi's suggestion. "It's the Kyuubi for sure, I can tell," she said in a strained voice.

"But you host the nine tails." And really, that was the crux of the whole matter.

"I know," Kushina repeated. "That's why I'm so confused. It felt like the Kyuubi, but … I don't know. I guess something was missing," the woman tried explaining once more, still inadequately as ever. The woman clutched at her stomach, eyes staring down at it like she desperately wanted to get the fox within to explain things to her.

Minato crossed his arms, resisting the urge to run a hand through his blond hair. "Like artificial?" he offered his two cents.

"Someone tried to manufacture the Kyuubi?"

"Well," Kushina began uncertain, running with Minato's suggestion, "An Uzumaki would know about the Kyuubi – perhaps they were forced to tell what they knew about it. And assuming Naruto  _is_ an Uzumaki, maybe he was forced to become the jinchuuriki of the manufactured Kyuubi because he's, I don't know, compatible with it?"

The Hokage hummed amusedly, but gave their ideas a thoughtful consideration all the same. "Let's not get too ahead of ourselves," the old man finally said. "It would be best to see what Naruto has to say about this matter first, before we come to any conclusions." With luck, Naruto would be awake within a day.

* * *

 

It was in the early, early hours of the morning when Naruto finally stirred.

Kabushi notice it immediately, having only been partially resting at the time. He was situated in the bed next to his student, unable to fall into deep slumber with Naruto curled up in pain next to him.

He knew that the moment Naruto woke up, they would have the Hokage and his men lunging at their throats for answers, so the timing of Naruto's regained consciousness was remarkably favourable. It was early enough in the morning that the stream of nurses on call were diminished to only a few. This gave Kabushi more than enough time to speak with the boy before the nurses realized Naruto was awake and left to contact the Hokage. Although, perhaps, the Anbu guards had already done so. But even the illustrious Hokage needed time to get ready when roused from slumber.

Kabushi slipped out of his own bed, kneeling beside Naruto who groaned into his pillow.

"Naruto," Kabushi murmured softly, under the hum of the hospital instruments, trying to keep from being heard by the Anbu likely situated just outside the shut doors.

Naruto turned to his voice, a moan still on his lips. "Kakashi-sensei?" the kid slurred out heavily.

"Finally awake?"

Naruto nodded. Kabushi could see the moment the blond's fogged mind dispersed, and realisation of what had previously occurred finally registered. "Wait! The-" Naruto placed a hand on his stomach, tugging up his shirt to stare at the hidden seal. "I did it? Is everyone fine? What happened?"

Kabushi shush-ed the kid with a warning glance. "Everything's fine now. Good job," he said, offering Narui a smile. "The only thing left is a story for the Hokage. Let's make this quick," Kabushi added, with his eye kept firmly on the door.

"Are we telling the truth now?" Naruto asked.

Kabushi let out a hum in response. "In spite of recent developments, the situation has not changed as much as you expect," he answered honestly. "To be brief, our option are still to: one, tell the truth and either be believed and allowed to change the future, or thrown in jail as spy who know a little too much about Konoha's secretes." Kabushi held up a second finger, "Or two, not worry about being thought to be a spy by continuing with our story, and changing what we can in between their babysitting."

Naruto rubbed his stomach. "But what about the Kyuubi?" he asked, "They know he's sealed up in me now."

"They know something is sealed. They don't know it's the Kyuubi," Kabushi pointed out, "Kushina-san is the jinchuuriki of the nine-tails, and while she may recognise the one in you, the possibility of two nine-tailed beasts is unthinkable. Well, or at least unprecedented. Unless Yamanaka decides to risk another journey into your mind, whatever answer we give about what is sealed up cannot be easily proven otherwise." Judging the way Inoichi seemed in the interrogation room, Kabushi had no doubt the man would not dare to try his family jutsu on Naruto once more until, if anything, he was much, much more familiar with the nature of funijutsu. The man didn't look willing to go unprepared for a second time in fear of a more permanent effect than the one he had accidently caused.

Naruto let out a quiet, thoughtful, "Okay," as fiddled with the frayed ends of his blanket. "So, then, what  _do_  we tell them, Sensei?"

Kakashi could only shrug. "We should consider the consequences. What would be the better choice towards our ultimate goal?"

"Which would save more lives?" Naruto mused, scratching his head, because he too realised this was no longer the same past they were used to, and Kakashi's initial order to meddle carefully now had a higher tolerance. "I don't know." Naruto wriggled in the bed, wanting to leap up and pace around the room in an action-driven fit. His azure eyes dimmed in pain as he remembered the future. "You know what, Sensei, I just really want to stop Orochimaru and Danzou for what they did to Sasuke and his family. And for what they did to Sai too." The blond drew his legs up to his chest. "And just as important, we have to make sure Madara doesn't come back."

Naruto was hesitant when he turned to Kabushi. "Can we really do all that without telling the Old Man?" the boy wondered quietly.

"Perhaps not," Kabushi agreed slowly, eyes up on the ceiling as he thought it through. The silver-haired man lowered his gaze back to his student, serious. "But then again," he added, "there's also a chance can't if we do tell the Hokage."

"Eh?"

Kabushi elaborated, casting his mind into their future's past. "Do you remember when we went to capture Saskue back?" Naruto nodded, uncertain where this was leading. "Sasuke defected, became Konoha's enemy, and yet none of us could kill him, as per our orders."

"Of course not!" Naruto cried out, cringing when Kabushi shush-ed him. "Sasuke's an idiot, but he's still a teammate."

"He wasn't. The moment Sasuke left, he betrayed our village. He had every intention of seeing Konoha fall."

"Sasuke's not a criminal. He just made a bad choice," Naruto defended.

"And here lies the problem," Kabushi concluded quietly. "I couldn't kill Sasuke because deep in my heart, he will always be my student. Every time we faced him, I desperately hoped he would see the errors in his ways before it was too late. You couldn't do it because he was your brother and best friend."

"So?" Naruto muttered bluntly, voice holding a tinge of anger because he always knew that in the end Sasuke would come back, despite what Kabushi was hinting at.

"The situation between Orochimaru and the Hokage is parallel to ours with Sasuke."

Naruto looked like he wanted to spit out an annoyed  _"So what?"_ , so Kabushi interrupted him before he could.

"If someone came up to you and told you in the future Sasuke would be the end of Konoha, what would you do?"

"That's a lie. Sasuke would never. He's a Konoha shinobi again. We're family!" Naruto denied heatedly, in pointed statements.

There was a soft ' _tsk'_  as Kabushi shook his head. "Even if the one to tell you had proof they were from the future? What if a future Sakura told you?"

Naruto faltered at the idea. The blond looked so utterly small and confused for all of a second, before his confident gaze slid back full force. "Then I'll try even harder to convince Sasuke to love Konoha!"

Beneath his mask, the Jounin in the room let out a long sigh. "Do you understand what I am getting at, Naruto? Even if we are convinced people like Orochimaru and Danzou are better off dead, those close to them won't feel that way. Orochimaru was once the Hokage's precious student, and Danzou the Hokage's friend."

"But we know all Orochimaru's done! We know all those experiments he did on people he kidnapped – shinobi  _and_ civilian kids!" Naruto huffed angrily with every word, "And he tried to corrupt Sasuke. Sasuke never did that anything that bad, ever! They're nothing similar."

Kabushi opened his mouth to speak, but Naruto cut him off.

"A-and," the blond stuttered, and his sudden hesitant caught Kabushi off guard. "And no one said anything about killing him," Naruto said quietly, looking away, as if restless about his teacher's judgement to his words. "Maybe they weren't redeemable in the future, but we're in the past, right? I gave Sasuke a chance, and it turned out to be the right choice."

That was the difference between Kabushi and his student.

Kabushi was one who balanced his options and chose one the most efficient route. Killing Danzou and Orochimaru was hard to accomplish, yes, but on the other hand, letting them off was a huge risk that would allow the two's lies and manipulations to grow deeper and deeper into the shadows of Konoha until it was impossible to purge later on.

Naruto conversely, saw too much good in people. He may passionately rage and beat the shit out of someone, but at the end of the day his compassionate nature helped him emphasise with the enemy. Not that Naruto hesitated to kill when it was truly necessary.

"Admittedly, I believe Orochimaru has yet to delve into the darker realms of his research quite yet," Kabushi said. "Danzou…" The silver-haired man scratched his chin and shook his head, "I'll have to get back to you about his current deeds."

"We can deal with him later, then," Naruto declared. "We'll tackle Orochimaru first!"

With the way his student was declaring his determined little statement, Kabushi was certain Naruto was more than ready to jump out of his bed and get to it, lack of plan be damned. "Maa, I guess I see what decision you've come to," Kabushi drawled with a mild smile on his lips.

Naruto's gaze was unwavering. "We'll take care of it so that Jiji doesn't have to worry about a thing. We'll get Orochimaru to change… but if we can't-" the teen cut off, cerulean eyes flashing as they narrowed into a glare, "-then I won't let him off. I won't let him hurt my precious people again!"

"Yes," Kabushi agreed.

* * *

 

Despite the early hour he was summoned to the Hospital, Hiruzen's arrival was haste. His appearance lacked the messy crumpled look one would have expected on one roused so early in the morning.

An Anbu saluted as the Hokage slid past him.

Inside the hospital room, Kabushi and Naruto were crowded around the blond's bed. The Hatake gave the man a blearily-eyed smile, looking for all purposes like he'd only woken up himself. "Hokage-sama," Kabushi greeted amicably. Naruto followed suit a second later, tumbling over the word, as he tried not to let what sounded suspiciously like another  _'old man'_  slip from his tongue as he greeted him.

"Good to see you are both well," the Hokage nodded, settling down. As friendly as the Hokage was known to be, especially in comparison to his fellow Kages, there was a time and place for everything. Without further preamble, Hiruzen jumped straight to the point. "Well then, shall we get on to business?"

Naruto jerked his head hesitantly into a nod. "You want to know about…" the boy clutched at his stomach. The blond's blue eyes glance down at it to indicate his seal, seemingly reluctant to actually verbally announce it.

" _Yes,"_  the Hokage wanted to say, and then forcefully push on. But, if Naruto's apprehensiveness was any indication, Hiruzen doubted they would get anywhere far that way. He knew he had to ease his way in somehow. "I would appreciate it, yes. But first, how about we talk about your name?" the old man suggested instead.

Naruto cocked his head. "Huh? What about it?"

"Should I call you Narui or Naruto?"

Realisation lit in the boy's eyes. "Oh that," he said with a careless shrug of the shoulders and a grin slowly but quickly growing on his face. " Uzumaki Naruto!" the kid cheered with a giggle. "Man, I miss saying that," he said in laughter and glee that Hiruzen felt had been much, much too long since it'd last graced the boy's face. Burnt in his eyes was the screaming form of Naruto, scorching in the evils of the fiery chakra that had taken the boy hostage.

"Uzumaki, indeed," the man murmured agreeably, before swiftly taking advantage of the kid's mood to switch tracks. "Did you know Uzumakis have a unique talent that makes them capable of restraining tailed beasts?"

The blond faltered at the topic. He seemed to retract in himself for a second.

"Hokage-sama," Kabushi interrupted immediately, "whether or not the Uzumaki clan is-"

"I believe young Naruto should answer for himself," the man cut him off, voice strongly commanding like the leader he was. "I was under the impression you know nothing about it. Or have you been lying to my shinobi?" the man challenged, recalling Kushina's tale of how the Hatake had refrained from answering her questions by claiming ignorance.

The silver-haired man's jaw snapped shut at the rebuke.

Hiruzen allowed the man to move closer to his young student, as that was the only thing he could do, warned by the Hokage himself not to interrupt. The warm, comforting hand Kabushi place on the kid's back help draw Naruto out from the worried ball he seemed ready to curl into. "You're talking about chaining down the Kyuubi, right?" Naruto finally asked, sounding like he was all too unhappy of what he knew.

"Correct. Speaking of the Kyuubi, I have been confided that the chakra you had emitted is oddly similar to it."

"Did K-Kushina-san tell you that?" the boy wondered in a low, worried mumble, momentarily stumbling over the woman's name. "I-Is she alright?" The boy's hand hovered over his own stomach once more, looking like he knew too well how whatever he had seal within him had harmed the Uzumaki woman.

"What is sealed in there?" Hiruzen demanded. Naruto's confidence wavered as he turned in spot, glancing at Kabushi over his shoulder. "Naruto," the Third demanded, forcing the kid to turn back to him. "What is sealed in there?" he repeated, holding the kid's cerulean blue gaze, refusing to let Naruto gain his answers from the silver-haired man he was leaning against.

"I- It's-" Naruto stuttered hesitantly.

Hiruzen shot Kabushi a firm glance, daring the man to just try and barge into the conversation, before focusing back on Naruto. "Yes?" he urged.

The answered rushed out under the man's strict gaze, in a whine that made the blond seem like a young child cracking under his beloved grandfather's scrutiny. "It's the Kyuubi's brother!" the blond declared, face pinching around the sides in a manner Hiruzen couldn't tell if Naruto was cringing in fear, worry, or guilt.

The hand Kabushi had placed on Naruto's shoulder tightened.

"Oh?" Hiruzen said skeptically, hoping to draw out another response. Naruto didn't take notice. "There are nine tailed beasts in this world. That is a well-known fact. Tell me, where does your tenth come from?" Hiruzen said instead.

"He's a nine-tail too!" Naruto defended immediately, before he faltered, realizing he had nothing more to add. "I-I guess there're two nine-tails?"

"That is impossible. Two nine tails will upset the balance of - " Hiruzen began.

Naruto cut him off with a "yeah, but uh, you know, my uh Kyuubi's not … complete? 'Cause he's like the younger brother, right? So he's not really an actual nine-tail, so he can't, uh, unbalance the world, 'cause he's only half of Kushina's Kyuubi- " rambling away in a speed that likely didn't pass through any brain-to-mouth filters.

It was no surprise Kabushi squeezed the kid's shoulders once more.

"I see," Hiruzen said grimly.

Naruto fidgeted under his unappeased face. "It's true! It's true! It's not my fault it sounds crazy," the boy cried out desperately. He leaned forwards towards the man, eyes wide with worry and unease. "You believe me right? We're not here to harm anyone!"

Even if everything else Naruto and Kabushi ever told him were lies or half-lies, that last point was without a doubt truthful. They two of them had confidently, resolvedly recited that fact in all sorts of wording, and Hiruzen had yet to find any proof of the opposite. There were suspicions of otherwise, yes, but as of yet, those were all they were, and likely ever be: suspicions. There were no concrete evidence because in the end, the two always and truly seemed to want the best for Konoha and their family who reside in it.

Hiruzen pushed his chair back, standing up from the bedside. Naruto seemed more than ready to pounce on him, to wrap his arms around him into an awkward hold, begging him to accept his answers. Kabushi was the only thing that held the blond back.

Hiruzen gave a casual stretch as he leaned onto the back of his chair with one hand. "Will you explain to me, then, the reasons of your actions in  _Yu no Kuni_?" the Hokage questioned.

Nartuo's back visibly stiffened. He twisted in spot, glancing at Kabushi with what appeared to be guilt and concern. To his expression, Kabushi only smiled gently, face freezing in place as he turned towards Hiruzen. "I believe we have repeatedly explained the reasoning multiple time to Yamanaka-san during our interrogation. I do not know what further you wish to hear because there is nothing else we can give you."

"Oh?" the man murmured, peeking at Naruto from the corner of his eyes. The boy seemed remorseful, like he was the one at fault about this whole thing. "Do you have anything to add to this, Naruto?" he pressured the young blond.

There was a shake of his head, but the thin line Naruto had pressed his lips into continued to show his continuous burden.

Hiruzen leaned forwards, eyes slowly shadowed by the rim of his Hokage hat. "Not only did you deliberately disobeyed my orders, but you left your post free for attack from the enemy. Tell me why I should forgive you for such errors? What if an enemy had slipped in in the time during that period; had the time to attack  _my_ men from behind, or slip into the village and attack our citizens? This would have all been on your head."

Naruto visibly gulped at the man's dark tone. But clearly he wasn't scared enough not to butt in when Hiruzen turned his glare on Kabushi. "It wasn't Sensei's fault!" the boy insisted, drawing the Hokage's narrowed gaze back on himself.

"Naruto-" Kabushi began.

"No!  _I_  begged you!" Naruto said facing his silver-haired teacher briefly before snapping his head back around to the Hokage. His blond eyebrows knitted on his forehead as he they tilted upwards. "I just didn't want Sensei to regret it if something happened to his family," Naruto pleaded at the Hokage in front of him, finger digging into his blanket, "They mean so much to him. It wasn't his fault! I told him to go!"

Kabushi shook his head. "I accept fault as well, as I gave into it," the man added on. The man's other hand clamped onto Naruto's shoulder as well, making the man appear as though he was holding his student as protectively as he could without full out wrapping his arms around the kid.

Hiruzen knew Kabushi wouldn't let him take the boy away without a fight if it came down to that. The Hatake hadn't needed to show it to him so pointedly though, because Hiruzen already knew that fact from the night before. Besides, if he had to pass judgement, in spite of Naruto's insistence, Hiruzen wouldn't let the boy take the blame for everything.

Hiruzen wondered if he should be surprised that despite Naruto's outburst, their story still hadn't changed. Naruto seemed the type to blabber out everything on his mind without a second thought if he became too heated in conversation. Had they truly been telling the truth the whole time?

Though, even if he were to forget about their previous treasonous actions, Hiruzen still had the demon sealed inside Naruto to consider. It seemed like if it wasn't one thing, it was another with these two.

The Third dipped his head into a nod from where he stood, an official sign of dismissal, concluding their meeting. As always, Naruto looked ready to complain, only to be held back by Kabushi. "Naruto," Hiruzen said calmly, "At the moment you will be placed under house-arrest until I speak over with my men. As it is, the nurses have mentioned that you are confined to the bed for recovery, so that should not be an issue?" He raised an eyebrow at the boy who lowered his head and nodded glumly. Around them, the discreet movement of additional Anbu surrounding the room increased by the Hokage's silent, implied orders.

"Kabushi," he continued, turning towards the Hatake. Of the two, Naruto was the ticking time bomb with the unknown beast (so-claimed brother of the Kyuubi) sealed within his stomach, liable to char their growing village with a thick, vile coat of chakra. Kabushi was nothing compared to the thought of that, but the man was experienced, if his age and the way he moved was any indication, and the Hokage highly doubt he was truly ignorant of the beast within Naruto as he had claimed. "Kabushi, be grateful I have decided to be lenient. I will ask Kakashi for his permission to open up the Hatake Compound. You will be residing there instead of Kakashi's apartment."

Kabushi had every right to bristle at the indirect stab that the Hokage didn't trust Kabushi alone around his thirteen-year-old nephew, but the silver-haired man made no movement nor comment. If anything, he seemed resigned and relieved he hadn't been kicked out of the village.

"Understood, Hokage-sama," Kabushi agreed.

"Excellent. I will send an Anbu to confirm the arrangement with you as it is finalized." With that, Hiruzen left the two alone in the room.

Outside the room, Kushina leaned by the door, the only sign of her nervousness the fidgeting of her hands. Minato shifted on his feet beside her.

"Hokage-sama!" the redhead cried out in greeting when the man stepped out. Her voice was hesitant, yet held a strong tone to it, desperately needy.

"I assume you wish to know what transpired inside?" Hiruzen guessed. Despite his formal wording, his eyes were soft – he knew why Kushina wanted to know. If the boy's identity of Uzumaki was honestly not a lie, she would have family in the village after such a long time alone.

Kushina's eyes widened in plead, head nodding.

"Yes sir," Minato replied for her.

"Nothing has been verified, however, Naruto has confirmed his identity as an Uzumaki." He waited as Kushina sucked in an excited breath. "As for what is sealed inside of him, Naruto's explanation was surprisingly similar to what you had presumed, Kushina."

The woman let out a quiet ' _huh?_ ' to which Hiruzen elaborated, explaining how Naruto had also described the demon sealed in him to be something less than the Kyuubi.  _'Half of Kushina's Kyuubi'_  were the exact words he'd used.

"I know that's what I said I thought … but what does that mean exactly?" Kushina wondered.

The Hokage hummed thoughtfully, but didn't contribute any more than he did.

Minato gave Hiruzen a curious glance as the other man only dismissed himself and walked out of the hospital with them in tow. "Do you have any ideas?" Minato wondered out loud, because for the life of him, he had none himself. Or at least nothing that didn't sound outrageous.

Hiruzen lifted his lip into a small smile, humming cryptically once more. "I'm heading over to flip through some of the secured scroll archived in the Hokage Tower," he said with eyes that burned with curiosity that earned him the title of  _The Professor_. "We'll see."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Q: Why did Naruto say Madara?  
> A: Naruto and Kakashi left the future before Obito was revealed to be the Madara they were fighting


	11. Again

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Blink, scratch your head, and do a double take. What's this you see; an update? Are you dreaming? Who knows.

 

Kabushi padded quietly across hardwood floors, leaving behind dusty footprints with his every step. The air in the Hatake Compound was musty and stale – no surprise due to the decade of disuse. The moment he'd been allowed to, that tiny eight-year-old Kakashi he'd been had swapped that haunting Compound with a cold apartment unit. The apartment was still nothing like a  _home,_  but he hadn't cared; Sakumo's death had frozen Kakashi's every desire for the warmth and comfort, knowing too well how easily it could be ripped away.

With shaky rattles, several jammed traditional sliding doors broke free to allow a flow of air through the house. Kabushi sneezed at the sudden gust of airborne dust.

Little Kakashi had followed Kabushi and his Anbu guides as the older man was shown to the Hatake Compound. Kabushi remembered the teen's dark eyes as the Compound was unsealed, doors cracking open for the first time in ages.

Kakashi had been full of silent rage and haunted hatred. Kabushi was full of regret and life-time of grief.

Perhaps months ago, he would've also be flooded by crushing guilt as well, because he'd realised he'd done the unthinkable to Sakumo by scorning that great man who had sacrificed everything for his village. But in front of that campfire, in the void that was a pit stop before his journey to the afterlife (or resurrection, as it turned out), he had his time with Sakumo to unload his apologies and gratitude. That had been the first step to his ongoing process of healing.

Little Kakashi, however, was nowhere near that state. He was only now being nudged towards appreciating Sakumo's actions, towards understanding the fallacy of the Shinobi rules, and towards acknowledging those he called teammates. It was a slow and steady journey, Kabushi knew.

When Kabushi stepped across the threshold and into the Compound, Kakashi had long disappeared already, unable to watch, unable to stomach the sight of the Compound active again and bring back memories better left in the crevices of his mind.

Kabushi couldn't blame him.

"Kabushi!" Obito's voice called out.

Kabushi nudged open a window before turning around. Obito had let himself inside, obsidian eyes wide as he took in the dreary interior. "Do you have permission to be here?" Kabushi asked, because after that last fiasco, he doubted these kids were allowed around him without supervision.

Obito shrugged, thumb pointing over his shoulders. "Minato-sensei and Rin came with me."

The blond strolled forwards in a more sedated pace, expression reminiscing. Rin followed behind him, with more courtesy at the intrusion than Obito.

"Kabushi," they greeted, subdue, likely influenced by the Compound's atmosphere.

Kabushi nodded back.

"I hope you don't mind the kids tagged along inside. They were curious about the place," Minato said sheepishly. "Where is Kakashi? I was under the impression he came with you?"

"He left early on."

"Oh?" he said casually, though that sharp look in his cerulean eyes told just how attentive he was, despite Minato's mellow tone and posture. "Did he say why?"

"I wouldn't know," Kabushi lied, knowing full well Minato was only fishing for his response.

When Minato only nodded wordlessly, Kabushi disregarded him, turning to the kids. Obito and Rin idled as the older men were talking, so safe and  _alive_  that sereneness washed over him. It was almost enough for Kabushi to find relief, despite the obvious scrutiny he and Naruto were now placed in.

"Hey Obito," the silver-haired man said out-of-the-blue, hand gesturing for him to come closer.

Obito did so. Minato watched coolly, silently, but Kabushi ignored the other man's caution.

"What?" Obito asked.

Kabushi rested his gaze on the young Uchiha. This was an Obito who would be able to experience all the joys of life that his had missed. Kabushi's lips stretched to a gentle smile under the mask. His hand affectionately ruffled the Chunin's hair.

Obito blinked cluelessly at him. "Uhh, okay?" he said to the unexpected fondness.

Kabushi didn't bother to explain, hand still rested on the top of his head, as if assuring himself the teen was still present, and nothing like the ghosts of him that relentlessly haunted his every waking hour.

There was confusion on his face, but Obito endured Kabushi's gesture otherwise quiescently, because he felt the tenderness in Kabushi's actions, and really, this was more than anyone in the stuffy Uchiha clan had ever genuinely given him. Though he did ask, "Are you substituting me for Kakashi?" almost unable to keep the envy out of his tone.

"Of course not," Kabushi scoffed without the least hesitation. "You're two different people."

Obito's heart warmed.

Rin smiled over at her teammate, happy on his behalf, before her head turned to look around, pulled by her curiosity.

"So this is the Hatake Compound?" Rin said, interest in her tone. "I didn't know there was such thing – Kakashi never mentioned it before."

Kabushi quirked a brittle smile under his mask. He removed his hand from Obito's raven locks, striding to the side of the house. "If Kakashi had his way, I don't doubt there wouldn't be one." He ran a hand across the yellowing walls, gloves turning white from dust. "It's not something you'd rebuild if it burnt down," he said honestly, because after the destruction of their beautiful village post Pein's attack, the Hatake land had remained barren as he wished it to be.

"That's stupid. Why burn down a perfectly good house?" Obito said in ridicule.

"What about all his memories here?" Rin added, appalled.

Kabushi let out a breath from the depths of his stomach, eyes faraway. "The bad outweigh the good, I'd think."

When Kabushi had wandered aimlessly throughout the house earlier on, to air out the rooms, his feet had halted in front of that nightmare of a study room. He'd dropped a hand on the sliding door, but it'd stayed there, unable to exert the proper strength to open it up. His nose already cringed from the scent of blood – or perhaps it was the mere memory of that puddle of crimson spilt on the tatami mats -, and the silhouette of his father's crumple form laid prone in the back of his eyelids. His will had faltered, and he'd left the room untouched for another day longer.

There'd been good times in this homey Compound, once-upon-a-time, but Sakumo's death had long shrouded over the whole of the place with his blood red shadow. Kabushi forgave him, but the taint could not be washed out.

Obito blinked at Kabushi's answer, and perhaps that wasn't understanding flashing across his gaze, but it was a thoughtful glimmer, nevertheless. "I bet there's plenty of good if you try to find it," he said at last.

Kabushi shrugged. Obito gave him and Minato a glance before he wandered off, dragging Rin with him, to find something in that childhood home of his teammate to prove Kabushi wrong.

There was an indulgent tug on Minato's lips as he watched the teens go. "He's right, you know?" he said to the Hatake. "I remember coming here with Jiraiya when I was younger – dinners with Sakumo and his wife, and later seeing Kakashi crawling through the house as an infant." The man's expression softened at the memories. "You have heard about Sakumo's death and Kakashi's views on that, but that is only one side of things. The Compound may have ended on that tragic note, but it houses more than just that event alone."

Kabushi gave him a meaningless smile. "But sometimes it hurts too much remember the rest," he countered ruefully.

He let out a sigh. Then, with a tilt of his head, Kabushi directed Minato towards the kitchen. The teabags were stale and unusable, but the cups only needed a quick rinse. He set a kettle of water to boil as he leaned against the counter, arms crossed over his chest. "So, may I ask why you're here?" Kabushi said, watching the man busy himself by wiping clean the kitchen table for their use.

Minato raised a blond brow. "Just seeing how you were settling down," he said simply.

"Mmm, and here I was waiting for an interrogation."

"Did you want one?" the blond retorted.

"You say that like you're not interested," Kabushi replied, with a knowing look. The travellers' unexpected appearances had already been a curious thing. Kabushi knew it'd never escaped their notice that Naruto looked eerily like the blond. Now that they learnt they'd lied about his name, the fact he carried a demon inside of him, and was an  _Uzumaki_  as well, Kabushi was certain his old sensei was itching for answers. If not out of his own satisfaction, then for Konoha's safety or Kushina's concern – because who knew what dangers the 'brother' of the Kyuubi posed as a threat, and how exactly was he related to the only other Uzumaki in Konoha?

"So, Naruto?" Minato commented at last, seemingly unable to help himself.

"It's a good name for a young boy," Kabushi answered idly, utterly unhelpful.

"A good name for food, you mean," a snicker sounded from around the corner, sounding suspiciously like Obito. There was a muffled sound, much like skin slapping across mouth, and shushing.

Minato turned towards the noise and cleared his throat pointedly. Tiny feet scrambled off.

A wiry smile stretched across Kabushi's face.

"Any reason why you lied about it?" Minato said, suddenly pulling the conversation back on track. His tone was more serious this time, likely had kept it light earlier because he'd known his students had been listening in. There was no such buffer this time.

The genuine humour slipped off Kabushi's face, replaced by something a bit more artificial, but there weren't many who could tell the difference.

"I heard from a completely reliable source that you Konoha-nins are addicted to your ramen. It wouldn't do to have my student boiled and served on noodles," Kakashi said sounding all the world serious.

"That would be cannibalism."

"Oh? My mistake."

Minato shook his head, exasperation intertwined in this action.

"And Uzumaki?" he continued, and Kabushi was surprised the blond wasn't pushing. On the other hand, this wasn't an  _official_  interrogation, and his students were still nearby and he probably didn't want them caught up in the repercussion should Kabushi react badly. He'd likely only asked for curiosity's sake, and to silently judge how willing Kabushi was to share.

Kabushi sighed, and pulled the kettle off the stove. He distributed the cups between them, fingers curling over his own. "There are rumors that the Uzumaki clan house a jinchuuriki. Perhaps those rumors are not of  _my_ student, but he is still one all the same. I didn't want anyone to misunderstand Naruto as the Uzumaki of the rumors. I've seen blatant hatred towards jinchuuriki before, and I wanted to spare my student even the possibility of that hatred."

Which was a poor excuse as far as excuses went, but it was the best one Kabushi could come up with on the spot that encompassed all the points.

"If he is safe from judgement of anyone, it is from the Uzumaki clan itself," Minato said softly. "You've met Kushina already."

"Yes we have," the silver haired man agreed instead of continuing as Minato was discreetly prompting him to. Minato made a slightly frustrate sound from the back of his throat, but didn't continue to persist. Kakashi was certain the man remembered the look of utter fondness and longing Naruto had had on his face when he had first met the redhead. Kakashi had tried to snap his student out of it, but the expression on Naruto had been too strong to be ignored and forgotten so easily.

"You never mentioned it to her."

"No."

"The Land of Whirlpool had few survivors. Didn't you think for Kushina's sake, at the very least, to let her know she still had relatives left? You had no excuse before you even knew she was here, but after meeting her ... aren't you the ones persistently insisting on the wonders of actual family?"

Minato had an excellent point, but Kabushi merely scoffed, pretending he didn't agree with it. "And then what? Suffer suspicion for lying about Naruto's family name? And though the Uzumaki may tend to generally be free of judgment to hosts of tailed beasts, there are always exceptions. I'd rather not my student risk opening up to Kushina only to have her scorn him later on when she realized what he was. We didn't know she was a jinchuuriki too until the other day."

"Kushina wouldn't," Minato said confidently. "Even if she not been one herself." The blond was quiet for a second, blue eyes studying the Hatake's face raptly. "I'm surprised Kushina didn't recognise him. Large clan or not, Naruto would stand out with his blond hair. Most Uzumaki have distinctive red hair," he said as if in passing wonder, and made no mention to Kushina's presumption of how Naruto had been born after Whirlpool's destruction.

"It came from his father," Kabushi confided easily. "And from what I know, Naruto's family left very soon after he was born."  _Left'_  just had a different meaning to it than the one Kakashi wanted his sensei to pick up on.

Minato pursed his lips. Then at last he took a sip of his hot water and sighed, letting the unplanned interrogation reach its end. "Well," he told Kabushi, "Kushina has been insisting on spending time with Naruto. Maybe she'll remember his parent."

"He'd like that," Kabushi said agreeably, "if only just to be able to escape the boredom that comes with being confined indoors," because he hadn't forgotten his student was to be placed in house-arrest after the hospital deemed him certified to be released.

Hopefully the invitation mean Naruto hadn't lost his parents' trust yet.

* * *

 

**Days later:**

Rin and Obito made their way to Kakashi's small apartment unit.

Though the three rarely visited one another, that didn't mean they were clueless of their teammates' places of residence. It had been a task early on by Minato-sensei, in order for them to get to know each other better. Perhaps he'd hoped the children would spend time together outside of training, for meals or sleepovers, but the plan had failed. Obito was an Uchiha, and the Uchiha were not fond of outsiders intruding their Compound. Rin was Obito's crush, and the teen was always too nervous to accept an invitation to come over. Kakashi refused to try to get along with either of them in training, let alone his private time.

Still, it made the current of task of finding Kakashi's unit simpler.

Obito was talked idly to Rin as he reached Kakashi's place, as if the job of locating Kakashi was trivial, and his main objective was entertaining Rin instead. Though truth be told, outside of missions, Obito considered that to be fact,  _always_.

"- it's not fair that they won't tell us," Obito was saying to Rin, while his hand continued to pound on Kakashi's apartment door.

The door wrenched open, and Kakashi caught the end of his words, moving out of the way before Obito's hand could accidentally strike him. "What makes you think you have the authority to know anything?" he said immediately. Though he didn't know what the conversation was about, Kakashi was smart enough to deduce it, knowing how much of their lives recently revolved around those two unknowns living in their village walls.

"Shut up, Bakakashi," Obito replied on reflex, only to suddenly blink as a thought dawned on him. "Oh wait a minute. Kabushi's your uncle, so do  _you_  know what happened?" There'd been nothing, no rumours, no speculations, about Kabushi and Narui's involuntary visit to the Konoha jail. All they knew was what they heard that day the two had been seized – the possible treason against Konoha.

Which, in Kakashi's opinion, was reason enough, and why would he care more than that?

The silver-haired teen gave him a bland stare.

"Oh come on," Obito whined. "Tell me already.  _Something_  happened. Aren't you worried for Kabushi?"

"I don't care about that man," Kakashi spat. The silver-haired teen had briefly entertained the idea, that small wasted optimism, that perhaps Kabushi was someone who he could open his heart to. He reminded Kakashi of what he'd lost, that spark of memory of what family was. But that had clearly been a lie. His father _,_ and now his Uncle. What was the point of trying if everyone just betrayed him in the end?

"What is your problem, Kakashi?"

"Are you just going to ignore the fact that he'd done something to warrant being sent to prison?" Kakashi reasoned, perhaps not quite answering Obito's question, not that the idiot realised.

"He was let out," Obito argued, voice heating up.

It was a tentative release, Kakashi was certain. "Narui is in the hospital, and that man has been sent to the family Compound."

"Yeah, so? They were both still released," the teen countered. Then he paused and corrected absentmindedly, "And you mean Naruto."

Kakashi's eyes narrowed. "What?"

"Naruto's in the hospital," he reiterated unhelpfully.

Rin elaborated, "We overheard Sensei and Kabushi talking about it. It seems Narui's real name is Naruto." She sounded bashful at the admittance of eavesdropping, but that was the least of Kakashi's care.

Kakashi's head swiveled towards her, gaze still sharp as ever. "When was this?" he demanded, because he didn't hear about this, and Kabushi hadn't been released all that long ago.

Rin fretted under his intense gaze. Obito had no problem drawing it away from her.

"We were at your family Compound-" the raven-haired teen began, rearing for a long rant, but he was cut off before he could even finish.

The intrusion had clearly hit all the wrong buttons. There was a loud bang as Kakashi's palm slammed against his plastered wall. "Who gave you permission to enter," the silver-haired teen snarled.

Obito stiffened at Kakashi's unreasonable cry. "We don't need your permission. You don't even live there," he spat back, arms crossing over his chest. "You never even told us you had one in the first place," he said, indignant, because though the team didn't know everything about each other, Obito thought four years was enough for Kakashi to confide to them the fact he had an actual family Compound. If anything, to retort against all the times Obito complained about his own Uchiha Compound.

"Stay away from it," Kakashi roared instead.

"Make me," Obito huffed. "What's your problem. It's a nice house."

"There's nothing nice about that place. It should be burnt down," Kakashi growled, not dissimilar to Kabushi's speculation. Obito had to wonder how earnestly the older man paid attention to Kakashi's behaviour for him to be able to understand his thinking so well. "And Kabushi should be kicked out of Konoha," the silver-haired teen added obstinately, comparable to stomping on Obito's flash of insight.

"I'm sick and tired of you hating your uncle for nothing," he growled.

"He's not my uncle."

Obito threw a punch before he could help himself, spurred by Kakashi's words. How often he'd wished for relatives half as kind and thoughtful as Kabushi – Kakashi was a bastard who didn't know how to appreciate things in front of his face. Wasn't he supposed to be a prodigy? Then how could he miss the way Kabushi watched and cared for him, underneath his teasing?

"No!" Rin exclaimed.

Kakashi snarled, ducking the other boy's punch, paying no heed to her. Swiftly, he turned on his heel, arm thrusting out in the same motion. A kunai shot past the Uchiha, a hair's breath away from hitting.

"Ha! Missed," Obito taunted, but Kakashi didn't reply.

Instead, his arm contracted, and the glistening of ninja wire tied to the kunai he'd thrown suddenly made itself known. With a sharp tug, the window behind Obito snapped open, kunai still coiled around the latch. A kick was all that was needed to bodily remove the teen from his apartment unit.

It took a second for Obito to realise there was no wall behind him to catch his thrown form. "What the hell!" Obito screamed. His heart panicked as he fell, stumbling inelegantly as he clumsily braced for the unexpected drop.

Kakashi hopped through the window, sneer on his expression. He perched crossed-arm on the adjacent fence. "Missed, did I?" he said haughtily down to the teen.

Admittedly Kakashi had been trying to get along better with Obito since that last dreaded mission, finally understanding how much Obito valued him and Rin. Still, he truthfully wasn't as impassive as he tried to play off about Kabushi's betrayal. He needed someone to lash out at, and Obito was always so eager to break into a scuffle with him.

"Lucky shot," Obito bit back, leaping to his feet. He pulled his arm back.

"Boys! Stop it!" Rin interrupted, rushing between them. She hopped down on the fence beside Kakashi, hand latched on her sullen teammate's arm to drag him down with her as she jumped.

There was a scowl on Kakashi's face, but he let her, because Rin meant no harm. Though his trust would not be freely given, he did acknowledge the efficiency of a tighter team.

Obito faltered at the sudden appearance of his crush between him and his target, and huffily shoved his offending fist into his pocket instead. "I wasn't going  _hurt_  him," he muttered moodily, at her disappointed tone.

"As if you  _could,_ " Kakashi riposted.

Obito's posture bristled visibly.

"Kakashi," Rin admonished, then, " _Obito."_  She turned towards both of them. "I know you boys like your spars, but now is  _not_ the time. Save it for the training grounds; we're in a residential area."

Obito shrunk into himself. Kakashi only huffed.

"Anyways," she continued, "Obito and I came for another reason, other than getting into another senseless argument," she said with a pointed stare at the teammate who instigated the mess to begin with. Obito shuffled his sandaled feet, head dropped into his chest.

"What do you need?"

"We've been summoned to the Hokage Tower. There's a new mission for us."

 

The three ninjas made it to the Hokage Tower in a timely fashion after their minor scuffle. With a greeting, they knelt in front of the Hokage, looking ever the professional subordinates, and nothing more like the bickering children they'd been only moments before.

"Ah, you're here. Excellent," Hiruzen said.

"We apologise for our tardiness," Kakashi said for the group, though the glower he sent at Obito wasn't very discreet.

"Nothing to worry about," the man forgave, because it hadn't been urgent – if it were, he would've sent out an Anbu. If Kabushi had been present, he would've told them how lenient the Hoakge usually was to minor faults like that. Never mind the fact they'd not even managed to reach Kabushi's usual level of unpunctuality. Hiruzen gave the children a placid nod, carrying on, "In regards to your recent mission at Kannabi Bridge, a follow up is necessary to observe the impact of our previous success."

The three stood in military attention as the Hokage explained the situation.

"Rest assure, it is nothing taxing. A simple B-rank," he continued. "I believe Team Kakashi can easily accomplish this task." The Hokage explained the mission, the three teens standing tall and proud before him, accepting the task. "Questions?" he asked, once the briefing was over.

Obito cocked his head, curious. "What about sensei?"

"Minato will not be joining your team; he will be dispatched on his own mission in a while."

Kakashi frowned, feeling indignant at his teammate's question. "Are you questioning my ability?" he said tersely. "We are more than enough for a B-rank."

Obito glowered at him. "No need to get all cranky. I was just asking," he muttered, looking away.

The honest truth was that Obito  _was_ nervous. It would be the first time they carried out a mission without their sensei's supervision – that last mission didn't count because Minato had kept tabs on them, whether they realised or not, reappearing before them during their worst moment and saving their collective lives.

Yet this time, they were completely and utterly alone.

Obito had sworn to himself he would make sure he would keep Rin safe this time and all times to come, but he couldn't do it himself. Kakashi was milder now, than the indifferent, solitude bastard that almost left his teammate to die. But there was a learning curve there. Obito wasn't a fool not to notice he was still wavering, on the edge of re-following his chosen path of life or to test the waters of the choice Obito had shown him. Kakashi was especially fluctuating, with Kabushi's actions chaining doubt to his mind.

Obito wished Kakashi could see Kabushi wasn't as deceitful as he was making him out to be.

"If there are no further questions, you are dismissed," the Hokage's voice cut through his thoughts.

The three dropped into a bow, before heading to the door. Kakashi turned the handle, only to be assaulted with the one thing he wanted to avoid. There was a mob of silver hair on the other side of the door, Kabushi, with Naruto by his side.

Kakashi tensed, head jerking away, steps quickening. Rin blinked at his actions and then dropped a nod at the older man in greeting. Obito openly grinned.

Naruto grinned back.

Kabushi gave them a nod, hand unconsciously ruffling Obito's raven hair as he passed by.

"Again?" Obito said. "Not that it bothers me or anything," he hastily added.

Kabushi didn't tell him how fifteen years of a recurring nightmare was hard to break free from. Nor could he ever explain the utter relief he still felt from the sensation of Obito, real and solid, under the palm of his hand.

Though he really should stop if he didn't want to catch any unwanted attention. The Hokage was already observing their interaction with a calculating glaze. – and no doubt Minato had already relayed to him Kabushi's actions earlier in the week in the Hatake Compound.

Kabushi's single eyes spared a second to track the kids' backs as they trod out of the office to make way for the newcomers, before shaking himself out of it and carrying on.

Naruto watched him, partly concern, partly pleased, because he had known just how badly Obito's death had impacted him. The blond had felt the influence whenever they had training together, losing his teacher to the memorial stone for hours on end before he would finally grace the future Team Seven with his presence.

"Problem?" Hiruzen asked casually, though he knew better that he would be answered honestly.

"Of course not, Lord Hokage. I was merely worried for my nephew. I haven't seen Kakashi in a while," Kabushi replied. He tilted his head, and adopted a sulking look. "I think he's ignoring me," he said in a light tone.

"I see." Hiruzen steepled his fingers, staring over them at the two. "It is only expected, after the stunt you pulled in  _Yu no Kuni_. What had you hoped to achieve with that?" he said.

"Mmmm, seemed like a good idea at the time," Kabushi replied, ignorantly. Naruto looked away mutely.

"I truly wonder if you hadn't foreseen the consequence of such acts towards your relationship with young Kakashi, or had you proceeded with your actions despite that? It makes me wonder about your claim to rekindle your family connection," he mused, slowly, softly, to no one in particular.

Kabushi bristled, but didn't respond. There was no need to defend himself, because he saw the Hokage's words as he meant them to be – rather than doubt, it was a threat, daring him to do the boy any harm if his love for him was only a lie.

On the other hand, there was a low growl under Naruto's breath. "Sensei cares!" he asserted. His fury tapered when the Hokage glanced over at him with a measured look on his features. "Sensei cares a lot," he said again, more softly this time.

"May I ask the purpose of our summon here?" Kabushi asked politely, drawing the attention away from his student.

Hiruzen made no comment about the pull away from the topic, because he'd said his piece, and Kabushi had been warned.

"Despite my misgivings about the two of you, I have yet to find fault in your assertion of doing Konoha no harm. As such, I am willing to officially grant you both tentative citizenship."

Without a pause, Hiruzen shuffled through the paperwork on the large wooden desk in front of him. He leaned back on his chair when the right forms appeared in his hands. "There are some minor technicalities that need to be worked out still for the two of you to be lawfully accepted. This time spare us of the lies," the man said, no amusement in his tone.

There was an almost sheepish look on their faces. "We will try our best," Kabumo said bashfully congenial. But Hiruzen could see under that teasing, and realise the man hadn't given him a definite answer.

"Names."

There was a small pause, and then, "Uzumaki Naruto," the blond said proudly, so relieved like a burden off his back.

Hiruzen jotted it down and turned to the older man beside him. "Hatake Kabushi," the Hatake only said. The Hokage regarded the man with an intense gaze, but didn't comment otherwise.

"Ages," he continued instead.

"Fifteen and twenty-nine," Kabbushi answered for the two of them.

"And of your histories," the man said, tone accusing of lies.

Kabushi didn't visibly respond to the challenge. "Nothing we didn't mention before," he insisted instead. "I am a traveller since a child with my mother. Naruto is an orphan I picked up along the way. There may have been more to Naruto than I mentioned, but my silence was for the boy's safety, because I know some shinobi's views on jinchuuriki, and I will not let my student be treated as a weapon."

"And how did you find out about it yourself?" Hiruzen asked, projecting curiosity, but it was honestly an interrogation.

"I told sensei," Naruto interrupted, knowing full well Kakashi-sensei wouldn't implicate him if he didn't need to. But it was hard enough to lie to the Hokage as it was. "I found out it was sealed into me after I was born."

"Why was it?"

The blond shrugged, "Donno. My parents are dead so they can't tell me."

"However you were able to find out when it was sealed but not why?" Hiruzen pressed skeptically.

Naruto froze for a second, before shrugging, eyes glancing over at Kabushi. "Uh, well it's not my fault that's all they left for me to find out."

"Perhaps," Kabushi cut in, "they didn't want to burden Naruto with the knowledge. Knowing he already had something sealed into him, something that would make others fear him, was already burden enough. No parent would want to their child to carry so much weight on their shoulders."

Naruto resolutely didn't visibly sigh in relief at Kabushi's follow up.

The Third's fingers tapped a rhythm on his desk. "Perhaps," he allowed. "But did you not fear Kabushi would leave you once you informed him of the guest in your stomach?" he asked.

Naruto shrugged. "It's sensei. I trust him. Kabushi-sensei's a pervert, and he's always late, but he would never let anything happen to me, no matter what. I  _know_ it."

Kabushi's heart warmed. Since the day he promised that to his precious Genin during their first C-turned-S-rank mission, Kabushi tried to live up to his words. Sometimes he wondered if his kids ever believed him, seeing them turn to other mentors, or in Sasuke's case, leaving Konoha completely. It was pleasant to see Naruto had taken his words to heart.

The Hokage didn't say anything against Naruto's conviction.

"Very well," Hiruzen agreed. His hand moved slowly across the papers in front of him, his cursive scrawl filling the page. "I'll need you to report to the immigration office before everything is finalised. I will send an Anbu to direct you there once the paperwork is finished. Until further notice, you are dismissed."

The two before him bowed in unison. They turned towards the door, but while Naruto's action was natural, Kabushi's was full of hesitance.

Hiruzen's face was lowered as he regarded the forms on his desk, but his eyes were peeked unnoticeably on the Hatake's lingering form. Regardless, he didn't react, forcing Kabushi to speak up. "A moment of your time, Hokage-sama?"

"Is there a problem with my edict?" he said, finally looking up.

"No sir. I only wish to enquire about Kakashi's mission…"

"Oh?" he murmured, voice silkily dangerous. "You are surely aware such things are confidential, unless there's a particular reason you believe you need to be privy to the fact?"

"I don't wish for details," Kabushi refuted promptly, hearing the unspoken implication. Because only a spy would want this information of coming missions, and Kabushi couldn't be suspected of one so soon after only just released from the judgement of treason. "I only want to know the difficulty – for Kakashi's safety."

"I do not believe he will have trouble with it," Hiruzen replied, unhelpfully.

"I see," Kabushi said, equally as unhelpful. But it appeared he never expected the Hokage to tell him much in the first place, merely using his concern to open upon the topic. Despite himself, Hiruzen indulged him, curious to see where it would lead.

"And what do you see?" the Third probed.

Kabushi gave a soft, but anxious glance. "That you have trust in you men," he said, deceptively mild. "But they are only children."

"You wish for them to have back up?" the man inferred. His face gave away nothing of his thoughts, merely answering, "You underestimate my shinobi."

"It is in the midst of war. The unexpected can occur."

Kabushi was paranoid for these children – unnecessarily so. There was something more ominous in the man's thoughts than simply an uncle's concern for his precious nephew. Yet he refused to be anything but painfully vague. "Do you have so little faith in these three?" Hiruzen asked.

Kabushi held his silence because it wasn't the children he had no faith in, but their ability to defy the fate that had befell them in a possible future, without help. Because Kabushi remembered a mission in his future that had been labeled as simple and straightforward by the mission scroll, but it had been anything but in the end. Or rather, the mission itself  _had_ been easy, but it was the interference of Mist ninja bent on capturing Rin that ruined the world for Kabushi. He'd failed Rin when she'd been kidnapped in the end, despite his best efforts, and was turned into the host for the Three-tails.

On the other hand, Team Kakashi had slipped out of the linear timeline once already, when Obito survived, and they hadn't known a thing then as well. Maybe it wasn't so much a stretch that they  _could_ defy their fates themselves?

Kabushi's gaze turned away from the men present in the room, staring out into the beyond. Did he have faith?

In Obito…  _always_.

Kabushi let out a long breath. Finally he shook his head to the Hokage's patient gaze. "He would never let anything happen," Kabushi acknowledged reluctantly, because that was a truth he could never deny. (" _To her,"_  he didn't tack on).

Hiruzen took the ' _He'_  as young Kakashi, because he  _was_ the commander of the mission, and there was no reason for Kabushi to correct him in the misunderstanding. "Indeed, Kakashi has proven himself capable of leading his team to success. His last mission had a positive outcome."

Kabushi nodded absentmindedly.

The Hokage leaned over his desk. His fingers laced together as he regarded the man. His eyes were dark and attentive. "Then let me ask you again, Kabushi. Why are you so worried? I can't help but find the similarities your current reaction parallel to the one of the team's previous mission." And they all remembered what happed last time, and the predicament that led to Kabushi and Naruto's imprisonment.

Kabushi's expression was calm, posture slouched in an idle stance that didn't betray his mood. Yet, he didn't seem aware his right hand was twitching, scrubbing against his thigh, as if drenched uncomfortably in unseen grim.

"Nothing of the sort," Kabushi denied, smile forced on his lips. The travellers had only been released, and even a fool knew a repeat offense would not be overlooked as lightly as the last. "I-" Then the silver-haired man's posture untensed and he held a more genuine expression. "I believe in Team Kakashi. I have belief in him," –  _I couldn't save her, but, "_ he can do it."

The Third nodded to himself. "Then there is nothing to be concerned about. The mission is not as dangerous as you may fear," he offered once more, then, perhaps to make peace with the other man, added, "Truth be told, I have confidence even a two-man squad is more than enough, let alone a team of three."

 _"_ _I know,"_  Kabushi didn't say. " _You sent two previously and I failed your expectations,"_  he also didn't add.

"It's just for the sake of my apprehension," Kabushi said instead, voice tight.

Hiruzen noted it, but only moved to shake his head. "The unfortunate result of war," Hiruzen replied calmly, "is that we are always short on men," and that was more than enough reason for a refusal to send back-up – especially since the anxiety was baseless and seemingly unlikely.

The Third dismissed Kabushi and Naruto not soon after that. The second their toes crossed the threshold of the doorway, Naruto turned towards his sensei. "Again? So soon?" he said in disbelief.

Kabushi smiled humourlessly but didn't say a word.

* * *

 

**Later that day:**

"This is everything?" Hiruzen asked with a frown. The Anbu who had delivered the document nodded silently, and Hiruzen's brows only furrowed deeper.

He'd asked his shinobi to retrieve the medical documents of Kabushi and Naruto's initial stay in the Konoha hospital, yet the files he received were incomplete. He was missing the report for one half of the travelling duo, with no indication of Kabushi's stay. He knew his nurses did a better job than this.

The Hokage settled his pipe on the pipe tray, slowly easing his way out of his chair. "It seems I should get to the bottom of this," he murmured to himself. There was something going on here he wasn't aware of, and for the travellers' sake he hope they weren't involved in this particular plot.

He was due for a break anyways.

Pushing aside his paperwork, the Hokage set course for the Konoha General Hospital.

At the doorway, the receptionists stood to bow at his presence, but the man merely waved them down and continued his stroll. He casually wandered through the halls, searching. Finally, "Nurse, where are the rest of the files for the two 'unknown' patients treated here previously?" he said startling a young brunette engaged with chatting with a fellow colleague.

The woman turned to the voice, flustered, before professionalism took hold. "Hokage-sama, I apologise for not noticing you." She handed off her clipboard to the other nurse, rattling several simple orders, before giving him her undivided attention. "Patients?" she echoed. Her eyes caught the folders the old man held open in his hand. "Oh, please excuse me." She leaned forwards to catch a glimpse of the pages the man had flipped to, her own signature signing off the releases. "These should be the ones, sir. They should be all there."

"Indeed? Was there not another patient brought in with this young man?"

The nurse stared at the diagnosis, trying to bring up a face to the notes. "Young man? Oh, the young blond Namikaze-san brought in. Let me think… the other man with him." She looked thoughtfully for a second before her face lit up, "Ah yes, I submitted his file to be filed as per protocol, Hokage-sama."

"Is that so?" the old man hummed.

As if spurred on by that the young nurse continued. "Upon uncovering his Anbu tattoo, I immediately pulled his file from public view. The moment he was discharge, I properly submitted his folder to the secure Anbu storage unit to preserve his confidentiality."

"His Anbu tattoo," he echoed softly.

"Yes sir. Namikaze-san had not mentioned it to me when he brought the two of them to be checked over. When I noticed the tattoo, I immediately set to verify its authenticity, and once proven genuine, I attended to his needs as unobtrusively as possible." The woman tilted her head in worry. "Have I made an error, sir?" she asked in dread.

"Oh, no, no dear girl. You've followed proper procedures," he comforted with a warm smile on his face, and incredulity in his mind.

Anbu were anonymous shinobi, hidden behind the mask of ceramic mask; their medical information, information that could be used against them, was held in just as much of a secret, thus couldn't be filed alongside of everyone else in the village.

The exact members in the back ops were privy to no one but the Hokage himself, so their tattoos were used as authentication, while the nurses and doctors tried their best to avoid recalling anything about these confidential beings the moment they left their care. The methods to authenticate the mark distributed to Anbu Captains, nurses, and those in the need-to-know, and these measures had never failed them until now.

How could Kabushi be tagged with an authentic tattoo when Hiruzen was confident he'd never been Konoha Anbu – never entered Konoha before?

Replicating that tattoo was not a simple task. The Anbu tattoos carved into the arms of all the members of the black ops was formulated with a special mixture of ink and chakra that only the current Hokage knew.

Unless there was a more sinister, long-running plan hidden behind Kabushi, the theories upon theories that Hiruzen concocted in response to Naruto's tenth 'half' demon quickly dwindled down to a few glaring suspicions.

There was a single assumption that Hiruzen was particularly in favour to, because it quite nicely encompassed all these passing clues Hiruzen inferred from the travellers' words and actions. However, it wasn't without faults – most noticeable  _how_ it was possible, and also Kabushi's seemingly erroneous insistences.

Like only earlier, the Hokage was unceremoniously reminded of another time Kabushi came to him, plead on his lips. Yet nothing as worrying as Kabushi's attitude suggested had occurred in the end, and the Hokage couldn't help but wonder if this time would be a similar case as well.

Did Kabushi have genuine concerns, was he merely drawing needless paranoia, or was the world not conforming to what he knew?

The Third could have all the theories he wanted, but without proof, they still meant nothing.

Hiruzen rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "Did you take a blood sample of the man, by chance?" the Hokage enquired towards the nurse, but it was a far shot indeed.

She shook her head in confusion. "No sir, he did not require one. All both patients required was a wash and rest to recuperate their chakra. There were minimal cuts that required little attention to."

"Of course," Hiruzen nodded in dismissal. Of course it wouldn't be that easy. "That is all, then. Please, don't let me interrupt your work."

"Thank you, Hokage-sama."

Hiruzen watched as the young nurse hurried back to her duties. His fingers spun the unlit pipe in his robes as he made his way back to his office, considerations swirling in his mind. He may still doubt Kabushi's insistence that something would occur, and the fact still stood that Kabushi had been wrong once before, but he couldn't deny that the Hatake's distress had been worrying.

He drew his mind to the scene of his office once more, from the moment Kabushi crossed the threshold. Kabushi had been worried, but despite so, he was still a shrewd shinobi – because despite how much he lamented at his nephew's new mission, Hiruzen had an odd, odd suspicion it actually wasn't Kakashi Kabushi had been worried for. Kabushi's attention seemed to linger more on another teen recently than Kakashi himself.

The man laced his fingers behind his back as stared up into the darkening sky. Then, in a decisive action, the Hokage plopped his pipe into his mouth and set to planning a new strategy.

* * *

 

**That night:**

In the Hatake compound, Kabushi sat by the window, eyes drawn to the moonless sky as he tried not to remember the crackle of his  _chidori_ , and the blood coating his hands. It was different because Obito was there, and with the kid's studious devotion to Rin's wellbeing, he would never let Kakashi impale his arm through her chest. Surely nothing could go wrong this time around?

In his office, the Hokage pulled a tired hand across his eyes and finished signing the remaining few paperwork on his desk. Then he turned to calls to his Anbu, resolution at last, Kabushi's concealed look of fear lingering in the back of his eyelids. He said profoundly, "Inform Uchiha Obito there has been a change to the mission. He is to be pulled out from the team."

 


End file.
